Watcher
by ratedgdr
Summary: A human detective and a Gardevoir agent try to solve a series of seeming unrelated crimes, an investigation that puts both of them in danger. Rated M for violence, strong language, and a couple of very strong lemons. Fisrt story in the "Saffron Justice" series.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or their related trademarks. I only own the original characters. Pokemon and related trademarks are the property of Nintendo and Game Freak.**

**This story is rated M for brutal violence, frequent and, often, very strong language, and strong human/Pokemon sexual content.**

Joseph Van Der Lunde watched as the Yanma fluttered around in the summer sun, flitting about from tree to tree and leaf to leaf, between pieces of grass and verdant bushes. Its wings shone in the sunlight.

Slowly and carefully, he reached down and lifted a camera to his eye. He pushed the button and the shutter snapped, startling the Pokemon and causing it to fly away. Van Der Lunde sighed and shook his head.

"Boy, I cannot WAIT until my digital camera comes back from the shop," he muttered. "Thankfully, I have my own developing studio."

He walked on, camera dangling from his neck. Ahead, a vast, turbulent river rushed by. He knelt beside it, waiting for a fish or something to jump out at him so he could get an incredible action shot, but after half an hour, he was forced to accept that it wouldn't happen. Sighing again, he stood up and walked along the bank.

He saw a tall tree, thick branches spreading over the river.

"That'd be perfect for some nice distance shots," he said, somewhat in awe.

He grabbed the highest branch that would be convenient to use to start a major climb, swung his lower body with all his might, and latched onto the branch. Hanging upside down made it tricky for him to get on top of the branch, but he eventually did so. Soon, he was climbing higher and higher, until he reached a limb that stretched steadily over the river. He carefully maneuvered his way to a point where he was perched at least twenty-five feet above the water.

He reached for his camera and began shooting photos, sighting vast expanses of forests and meadows. He was almost certain he saw a stray Rhyhorn, but he couldn't be sure, and film had its limitations.

Then he saw something else, and he had to stare at it for a while to make sure he was seeing what he thought he saw.

"A-a giant satellite dish and antennae? Out here? Somebody must really be hooked on TV and the Internet."

He carefully focused on the strange sight and snapped the shutter once, then again. It was something worth looking into. Maybe somebody could help him figure out who'd want to put something that ridiculous in the middle of seemingly nowhere….

He never saw it flying towards him from behind, nor did he hear a sound.

It struck him with inhumane force in the back of the head and neck, tearing them nearly completely off of his body, and the force of the impact caused him to fall of the branch and into the water with a tremendous crash. A thin stream of blood was left behind as the body floated downstream.

The camera smashed against the ground below, somehow not breaking, but a crack formed in the side of the case.

A boot suddenly came slamming down on it, crushing what was left. A hand then reached down, grabbed as much film as it could, and tore it, tossing the remains in all directions before the boot kicked what was left as far as it could. Then, footsteps would lead away from the scene.

* * *

The early morning light, or lack of most of it, was just right for Tess as she and her Pichu walked down the path to the river, fishing rod over her shoulder. The little Electric-type beside her was trying his best to catch up, watching somewhat helplessly as she skipped on ahead.

"Come on, Pichu, the Water-types bite best in the early morning!" she called to him.

"PICHU!" He cried out to her, causing her to stop and turn around.

"Whoops," she giggled. "I guess I got a little too excited. Here," she said, reaching down to pick him up, "how about I carry you the rest of the way to the river?"

Pichu snuggled against her as she walked on, the forest giving off a strange scent in the dawn air. Ahead was the river, which lent more sensations to the nose.

It had become a ritual for her ever since she had become a trainer. She felt some sort of release whenever she went fishing. It didn't matter if all she caught were Magikarp. Fishing made her happy. There could be very little wrong with such a pastime, especially if she found a Pokemon that she hadn't caught yet.

She stopped a moment to readjust the rod on her shoulder before continuing. The path was long, and it took her some time to reach the river, but soon, she arrived, and she set Pichu down with her gear.

Taking the rod, she loosened the line, checked to make sure that Pichu was not behind her, reached back with the rod, and swung it in an arc over her head as the line hit the water. She then crouched down and waited. And waited. And waited.

After several minutes, she gave up and reeled the line back in from the water. She sighed and shook her head.

"Usually, I have better luck than that," she mused. "Well, if at first you don't succeed…."

She tossed the line out again and again crouched down. Again she waited, as Pichu looked around absent-mindedly for berries. Again, she felt nothing on the line.

"Might as well reel it in again," she muttered.

She began to wind up the reel and was surprised when she suddenly met with resistance in her efforts. Letting out a whoop of excitement, she began to pull at the line as hard as she could without breaking it. Pichu began jumping up and down excitedly as she slowly began to bring something in.

"Boy, Pichu, this may be the biggest one yet!" she yelled as it drew closer to shore.

With one final tug, she dragged it onto shore, then turned, and to her horror, she saw that her line was attached to a lifeless human leg. She stood terrified for a few moments, absorbing the sight of what she had found, then began screaming, her Pichu huddling near her leg in fear.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's note: I own nothing but the original characters.**

**EliteDog: For what it's worth, the victim's ancestry is Dutch, although that's not really relevant to the plot. That won't be the last unique surname I break out, by the way.**

**Language warning:**

Frank Caldwell was awakened by a hot breath and a tongue licking his face.

He turned his head to try to avoid it, but the licking and breathing continued. He slowly started to open his eyes and got a sharp bark in his ear.

"Damn it, Biff," he sleepily groaned, "I don't need to go deaf this early in the morning."

The Growlithe jumped around on the bed as Frank looked at the alarm clock. "Oh, come on, it's not even six yet! I need more sleep than this!"

The barking was joined by a high-pitched yipping as a Vulpix scampered into the room.

"OK, fine, you win," Frank grumbled as he pulled himself out of bed.

He stumbled around the kitchen in something of a fog, feeding his two Pokemon before turning the teakettle on. He then sat down and started to doze off as he waited for the water to heat up, but was jerked back awake by the sound of his cell phone. He picked it up and looked at the caller I.D.: **HOPFMAR.**

"Ah, shit," he muttered as he hit a button and brought the phone up to his ear. "Caldwell."

"Frank? We got a floater," came the voice at the other end. "And it looks bad."

"There's gotta be better ways to wake me up than that."

"I'm sorry. Next time, we'll try to have one stand next to your alarm clock before they drop dead."

"I get it, boss. I'll be right there."

Frank hung up and let out an exasperated sigh. _No breakfast today, _he thought with dismay.

He got up and turned the teakettle off before turning to his two Fire-type pets. "I'm going to work early, you two," he admonished them. "No fire fights!"

* * *

As he drove into the thin light of early dawn, he mused about how many times he had calls like this since he became a detective in the Saffron City Police Department. They hadn't occurred often, and as far as he was concerned, it could stay that way. He was not comfortable around death, being more used to working robberies and traffic accidents. He had only investigated six suspicious deaths in his two-year career: three were suicides, one was an accident, another was natural causes, and the sixth was a murder but the killer turned himself in immediately afterwards in remorse.

He looked at himself in a mirror as he approached a stop sign. There were tired dark circles under his hazel eyes. The hair on his face looked more like it was buzzed down impossibly short by electric cattle shears, the red tint matching that of his mess of hair on the top of his head. He shook his head and sighed.

_I look like shit,_ he thought.

He brought the car to a stop at a horde of police vehicles and got out. The path to the river was blocked off by barricades and yellow tape. He approached it and showed his badge and identification to the Officer Jenny behind the blockage and she wordlessly let him through.

He walked a few steps towards the river and was met by a bald older man with a gray mustache and a badly colored tan suit. "Tell me you skipped breakfast before you came," he said.

"Don't worry, captain, I did," Frank reassured him. "Let me guess. It's ugly."

Hopfmar nodded grimly. "I think I'll let you see for yourself."

They continued walking down to the river until they reached the crime scene.

It was not a pretty sight: the man's head was torn nearly off his body, and the effects of being swept down a cold river had left their discolored marks. A swarthy man, very Slavic-looking in appearance, was crouched next to the remains, the word **CORONER **on the back of his coveralls.

"How long's he been dead, doc?" Frank asked.

The coroner straightened up. "With the water temperature as low as it is," he said in a thick accent, "I am afraid I cannot say for certain. Rigor has already set in, but that may be from the cold water."

"We got an I.D.?" queried Hopfmar.

"Nope," said another detective, walking up to the two. "Pockets were empty. Jeez, Frank, you look a sight."

Frank gave him a wry smile, "Thanks, Stuart," he said. "I tend to not be much of a morning person. Being stuck at the precinct doing mostly paperwork for hours doesn't help matters much." He turned to his captain. "Who called it in?"

Hopfmar jerked his thumb behind him. "Thirteen-year-old female. Says she wanted to do some early fishing and caught a corpse instead. Might want to go talk to her before LoMarco scares her silent."

Frank sighed. "That would do it."

He and Stuart walked over towards the girl. A heavy-set, badly balding man was standing nearby. He spotted the two and came up to them. "God DAMN, that poor bastard looks bad!" he said in a voice that could have startled a Slowpoke into speed. "Let me guess, you and Mr. Pink And Fluffy are going to go ask her questions?"

Stuart glared at him. "I think you know by now what will happen the next time you call me that, homophobic greaseball."

LoMarco snorted distastefully and walked off.

The girl looked scared, her Pichu clinging tightly to her leg. Frank took one look at her and felt pity. What she saw would likely scar her for the rest of her life. It didn't seem right to question her now. But it had to be done.

Walking up to her, he held out his badge. "Miss? I'm Detective Caldwell, this is Detective McManus. If it's all right with you, we'd like to ask you a few questions."

She silently nodded, in tears.

"Good," he said, trying to be as soothing as he possibly could. "So, can you tell us what happened?"

She sniffed back a tear. "I was trying to go fishing and I threw my line out and I thought I caught something so I reeled it in and… and…." She broke down in tears.

"Did you see anything or anyone else?" asked Stuart, half-heartedly. She shook her head.

Frank gave Stuart a look, and got a nod in reply. "OK. We're going to have an officer take down your statement, all right?"

The girl nodded, and Stuart gestured for a Jenny to come over. "Take her statement, and go easy on her, OK? She's been through enough already."

The two detectives walked off, Frank looking behind him once and watching her, sadly sighing as they continued on.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's note: I own nothing but the original characters.**

**Menace13: Don't worry, our main Pokemon protagonist will be introduced, but I want to wait three or four chapters to build up to that.**

**EliteDog: Yeah, I should have done more with the descriptions of the characters. I'll handle a bunch of that in this chapter.**

**Language and content warning:**

Hopfmar was waiting by one of the cars as they walked back from talking to the girl. "Well," he asked, brushing the dust from his suit, "how did it go?"

"Not so good," said Frank sadly. "Poor girl's probably traumatized for life by what she saw. All we asked was what had happened and if she saw anything unusual other than the obvious."

"And?"

"She pretty much told us what we already know," Stuart informed him as he stuck his hands in his pockets, his wiry frame seemingly too thin for his suit. "Which isn't much."

"Great. That's not going to help us any at all." He rested his arm on the roof of his car and held his head in that hand. After a few minutes of silence, he raised his head. "There's not much for you two to do here right now. Head back to the precinct until we get everything to the lab."

Frank and Stuart silently nodded as LoMarco walked over to them, his hair a badly thinning disaster of a combover. "Captain, there's absolutely nothing to do here until all those evidence Meowths finish their search. Could I just go back to my paperwork shitpile now?"

"Yeah, sure, get out of here," Hopfmar said, waving them away. "And take McManus with you."

"HELL NO!" yelled LoMarco. "No fuckin' way is that little-"

"How about I spare us having to hear your abusive ranting again and take Stuart myself?" interrupted a clearly disgusted Frank. "Then you can make your long, lonely journey to the precinct all by yourself and be happy in your bitterness and misery."

LoMarco snorted. "Whatever tickles your fancy, Franny. You two go enjoy each other's company all the way back, why don'tcha?" he uttered derisively.

"That's quite enough, you two," Hopfmar interjected. "You three get back to the office. And LoMarco, this constant offensive ranting has to stop. NOW."

He got in his car and drove off, and as Frank and Stuart were putting their seat belts on, they watched as LoMarco struggled to hold back his rage. Giving up, he began screaming and pounding the hood of his car as they drove away.

* * *

Stuart's neck length coal black hair absorbed the sunlight of the early morning as Frank drove to the police headquarters in Saffron City. "Man, I cannot begin to tell you how glad I am that you got me out of that mess. That goddamned gay-basher has been after me since I came out. I'd known friends who've been bullied for what they are or were, and my parents were not exactly thrilled when they found out, but Dom LoMarco has been a complete asshole. I'm telling you, Frank, it's hell being a trailblazer."

"Hey, I've been nothing but supportive for the past few months," Frank assured him.

"Yeah, it's nice to actually have straight friends to turn to," Stuart chuckled.

"You know, if I were to actually get a date anytime soon, I'd try to get her to go on a double date with you and whoever you're seeing right now."

Stuart sighed. "Yeah, IF I find anyone. Not many people around here want to date a male cop, especially a gay one. Most people drool over the Jennys. Can't say I blame them."

Frank suddenly felt compelled to change the subject. "Damn bad mess back there."

"Yeah, I know," Stuart agreed as they came to the city limits. "What the hell would cause that guy's head to nearly tear all the way the hell off?"

"I don't know," Frank admitted. "Hopefully Forensics can clear that up for us. Well, them and the M.E.'s office."

"What about the girl?"

"Hopefully she'll be all right."

Not another word was spoken as they finished driving to the precinct.

* * *

That afternoon, Tess decided to calm her shattered nerves by taking a walk downtown. Pichu, also shaken, stuck close to her leotard-clad legs. The sun reflected of her almost white-blonde hair as she started to unbutton her denim jacket.

* * *

The man continued to walk around the alleys and side streets, carrying around two paper bags that seemed to be well weighted down. He saw a Middle Eastern-looking man sitting behind the wheel of a taxi and walked up to him.

"Yeah? Whatddya want?" the cabbie asked.

"I'll pay you whatever fare you want," said the man, dressed from head to toe in black, "as long as you take me wherever I want. Quickly."

The cabbie shrugged. "Get in."

The man got in, sat down, and put his seat belt on as the cabbie drove away.

The driver looked up in his rear view mirror, and saw the man giving him a cold stare, his icy gray eyes carrying the essence of a curse. His medium-length dark brown hair was slicked back in almost demonic fashion.

"So, uh, where to?" the cabbie asked nervously.

"Turn left," the man commanded. The driver did so. "Keep going down this road, then left when I say left."

The cabbie was surprised by this order, but he kept on driving until the order to turn left was barked at him. He turned sharply into a dingy alley. "Can't go farther, kid," he said.

"Didn't want you to," was the reply. The man began to leave when the driver opened up the partition window.

"Hey, pay up-"

The man suddenly reached into his coat and withdrew a pistol with a silencer attached to the end of the barrel. Before the cabbie could react, the man fired one shot into his head and killed him instantly. The body fell forward, but the man grabbed the dead driver's collar and shoved him across the front seat to avoid the corpse landing on the horn. He then walked away.

He spotted the metal ladder leading to the roof of the warehouse, and, carefully gripping the handles on his bags, he grabbed the first rung. Pulling himself up and using the outside wall for footing, he climbed to the top.

He then found a concealed corner and crouched down, reaching into the bags and beginning to pull out parts from a disassembled sniper rifle.

* * *

Tess stopped on the corner and just looked around. She had only wanted something to take her mind away from the horrific events of the morning. All she had wanted to do was to go fishing and do something she loved. Instead, she was stuck with horrible memories for a long time. She was still trying to find something to blot that thought out when she suddenly heard her phone ring. She answered it. "Hello?"

"Look up," said a voice on the other end.

"Huh-"

There was a sharp _thwhip _sound, and she jerked wildly for a brief moment, then fell to the ground. Blood began to flow from a hole in the side of her head as bystanders fled screaming from her lifeless body. Pichu watched her fall, then began shaking her, trying to wake her up, whimpering.

* * *

After swiftly disassembling the sniper rifle and carefully placing it and the silencer in the bags, he cautiously scrambled down the ladder and left the alley. He began walking nonchalantly down the street, listening to the screams of terrified citizens as he searched for a cab to get him the hell out of there.

A driver was in a half-dozed state behind the wheel of one car, so the man went up to him and shook his shoulder to awaken him. "This car taken?"

The driver motioned for him to get in the back, and he did so. "Where to, kid?"

"Can you get me out of town?"

"I can take you almost anywhere in this region," was the reply.

"Great, just get me out of here."

The cabbie started the car and drove away.

They drove out of town as officers began to congregate around the scene of Tess' murder. The man in the back did not look behind him as they began to enter the woods. "Stop right here," he suddenly said.

"What? Here?" the cabbie asked incredulously. "Heh, OK. Forty bucks."

The man gave him a fifty.

"Heh. I typically don't give change, unless that extra's a tip."

The man in the back waved it off as he opened the door and walked out.

The cabbie was about to set the bill down when the man turned and fired a shot right through the window. Dead, he slumped to the side as the man opened the door, took his fifty back, and walked away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's note: I only own the original characters. All Pokemon-related trademarks belong to Nintendo and Game Freak.**

**I think now's as good a time as any to get to know our killer a little bit more, don't you think so?**

**Language warning:**

Frank finished the last bits of paperwork and leaned back in his chair, letting out a sigh as he did so. After the unpleasantness of the early morning, he was happy to be back doing something a lot more enjoyable than looking at dead bodies.

He reflected a bit on why he was accepted into training and graduated at the top of his class. Ever since he could remember, he was able to communicate telepathically with Ghost-type and Psychic-type Pokemon and was able to somehow communicate with Dark-types as well. He never knew how or why. He just knew that he could. As such, he was considered invaluable in any situation involving any or all of those three types.

Still, it wasn't the asset he would point to the most. He felt he was a good officer without it, and it was just a helpful addition.

It was relatively quiet up to that point, but then LoMarco walked in the building, and slowly but surely, a wave of suppressed giggles began to spread around the desks. LoMarco either did not hear or he chose to ignore it. Frank looked around in confusion, then saw the mischievous smirk on Stuart's face as he clicked the mouse on his computer.

Suspicious, Frank went to his e-mail. It only took him a minute to spot Stuart's e-mail address and a title of **GET A LOAD OF THIS! **With a sinking feeling of dread, he opened it and was stunned to see that Stuart had done it again.

It was another one of his "Dommy The Flatulent Ursaring" cartoons, always showing Dom as a morbidly obese Ursaring with digestive health issues. Frank knew how much Dom hated them as he once had to separate the creator and the target when Dom came dangerously close to reaching for his gun and aiming it at his gay co-worker.

The giggling got louder and louder as Frank furtively deleted the e-mail, then did a slashing gesture towards Stuart, signaling for him to delete as well.

Then he saw Dom walk, or rather, stomp over to Stuart's desk. "What's so funny, smartass?"

Stuart shrugged innocently. This made matters worse as Dom grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him out of his chair. "WHAT'S SO GODDAMNED FUNNY?" the larger man bellowed.

Before Dom could answer, Hopfmar walked in. "Put him down, LoMarco."

Dom basically dropped Stuart back in his chair.

"We've got three people just killed in and around Saffron a few minutes ago, including our river murder witness. I suggest you people spend less time trying to kill each other and more time trying to solve what happens out of the office. Let's go."

* * *

Ezra James Coleman was relieved when he finally got home. The bags had grown heavy in his hands as he made his way from the last cab that he had left. He opened the door and began hitting a series of power switches.

The lights began to come on, as did an endless array of computers and laptops. Setting the bags on the table, he went and sat down in front of one of the computers, picking up a heavy three-ring binder full of paper as he did so. Opening the binder, he turned the pages and came upon an unfinished line of code on one side, with more code on the other.

He began typing in the codes, watching one of the computers intently as he did so. Then he hit the Enter key, and a few moments later, the other computer began displaying error messages on the screen, getting worse and worse within seconds. He pushed his chair to it and summoned the main screen of the anti-virus program that he had installed. It showed that it had been disabled only a couple of seconds before.

He felt his heart skip a pleasing beat. He had actually managed the virus to the point that it could shut down an anti-virus program within seconds of the virus' activation! This was an amazing breakthrough! To think that he had achieved this in a few months' time after putting this together himself!

He got up and took a step back. It had seemed like an impossible dream. All those long nights of studying and obsessing over computer codes and technology had begun to pay off. All the research, all the money he had saved, and now he had begun to develop technology so advanced, so powerful, that it surpassed anything possessed by any government anywhere. All those odd jobs and strange hours and sleepless nights….

He smiled as he watched the infected computer crash. The perfect weapon of chaos was in his hands.

Frequent unemployment starting from the age of sixteen had begun to take its toll within weeks of losing his job as a PokeMart clerk. His lack of a complete education left him on the outside looking in on many a job opportunity, leaving him bitter. In his anger, he began to blame everyone and everything, from government to teachers and to employers that passed him by. It seemed childish at the time to swear his revenge, but he had become driven by his desire for anarchy. He wanted to watch everything burn for his troubles.

He took the bags full of gun parts and moved them to a closet. Inside the closet was a miniature catapult, a primitive yet powerful windup model capable of holding a small boulder, or perhaps a Geodude. It was able to be folded up and quietly put back together, and he could carry it on his back.

He glanced at his rocky Pokemon, eating his food in one corner.

Coleman hadn't intended to kill the photographer when he woke up that morning. But he wanted to make sure that nobody could possibly sound the alarm to the authorities. That would be disaster manifest. So he did what needed to be done to allow himself to continue to work in silence.

But then, on a hidden security camera that he had set up, he saw the girl pull the body out of the water and call the police. He had managed to also set up sound recorders near the camera, and was able to record her name. Looking up her name online revealed her phone number, and it was a relatively simple matter to buy a disposable phone from a gas station in Vermillion, making sure to pay in cash, then acquire a powerful sniper rifle and silencer. The rest was simplicity itself, with the two cab drivers being gunned down to assure that there could be no witnesses.

It seemed ridiculous that his life would play out like this, or that he would have technology that no one else had, such as the ability to remotely tap the phone lines of wherever and whomever he pleased. But for him, it was all real.

"Now all I need to do is figure out how to get past the last three anti-virus systems, and it'll be time," he said to himself as he returned to the computers, the infected one having been reduced to the blue screen of death.

* * *

"Son of a bitch," groaned Frank as he, Stuart, and LoMarco stood on the warehouse roof. "There's absolutely NOTHING here?"

"Not from where I'm standing," LoMarco replied.

Stuart shook his head. "Until Forensics gets up here and checks everything out, this place is going to be zero help at all."

"Add to that two random cab drivers getting shot, and we've had us too eventful of a day," LoMarco grunted.

An Officer Jenny pulled herself the rest of the way up the ladder and onto the roof. Frank went over to her. "Well? Anything?"

"Yeah," she said, still a bit winded. "Those two cab drivers? Looks like the same caliber bullet. Not sure if it's the same gun, but we think the same gun may have killed them both."

Frank raised an eyebrow. "Where exactly were the two drivers?"

"Well, one of them we found on the road just outside of town, and the other we found just a few feet away in a different alley."

Frank suddenly walked to the ladder and began to climb down.

"Where the hell you going?" LoMarco yelled at him. "We ain't done here yet."

"I gotta make a phone call," came the reply as Frank climbed all the way to the ground. "I have a really bad feeling about this."


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or related trademarks.**

**Sorry for the delay, I've had a lot of things that needed to be done in my life lately.**

**After some thought and planning, this will be the last chapter before I bring in our other protagonist.**

**Language and violent content warning:**

Frank was in a mental frenzy as he finished climbing down the ladder and reached for his phone, only for it to begin to vibrate as he pulled it out of his pocket. He answered: "Caldwell."

"Detective Caldwell? This is Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Yuri Rashmonov. I have found something during the initial examination of your river victim that I think you and Captain Hopfmar would be interested in," said the thick voice on the other end.

"We'll be there as soon as we can," Frank replied, and hung up. "Hey, boss!" he yelled to the roof. "M.E.'s office got something for us."

"McManus, go with Frank and see what's going on," Hopfmar said in way of reply. "LoMarco and I will stay here and finish."

Stuart scrambled down the ladder and ran over to the car, where Frank had swiftly marched and gotten in. Opening the door, Stuart asked him, "What's gotten into you?"

"I think I know what's going on," Frank told him, his voice full of concern.

"What do you mean?"

"Those two dead drivers? Those weren't random. Whoever killed them killed our witness, and I think that the same person also killed our floater."

Stuart was silent for a while. Then he said, "Kinda reaching there, Frank."

"I know it sounds ridiculous," Frank insisted, "but it's the only thing that makes sense. Why would somebody just randomly shoot a girl in the street and have a dead cabbie just a couple of feet away from the vantage point?"

"Sounds like a bit of a coincidence to me."

"Stuart, I wouldn't be going on like this if I wasn't certain about the connection."

They continued on like this all the way to the morgue, where the Slavic man stood waiting by the nearly headless body resting on a metallic slab of a table. "Ah, good for you to come, detectives. I believe I know what killed this man, although for the life of me, I was a bit perplexed at first and am still trying to, how do you say it? 'Wrap my head around it'?"

He led them to a microscope. "I believe our victim was killed by being struck with a very heavy object at high speed, as if it was launched. Possibly it was launched by a catapult or any other method of putting such an object to flight."

"He'd have to have good aim, whoever did this," Stuart muttered. "Poor guy's head got ripped off at an angle, almost like he was elevated and he was hit from something from the ground."

"Precisely," said the Medical Examiner. "But the object in question is what surprised me." He gestured towards the microscope, a small glass slide inserted. "Detective Caldwell, would you care to examine?"

Frank took a step towards the microscope and began to look through the eyepiece. Initially, what he saw was a small sliver of rock. But then he looked closer, and he saw an unusual texture that he recognized as only one thing.

"If the only words that serve you at this moment are profanities," Dr. Rashmonov added, almost as an afterthought, "by all means, release them from your system."

"No fucking way!" said Frank in disbelief. "Stuart, get a look at this!"

Stuart walked over and, moving Frank aside, looked. "Holy shit! This is Geodude skin!"

"Precisely, gentlemen." The swarthy Medical Examiner took off his glasses and wiped the lenses. "This is why I am so interested in trying to find out what could have been used to-"

"Do you have a copy of the report?" Frank interrupted.

"Yes, complete with the report of the Geodude-"

"May I have the copy, please?"

"By all means, Detective," the doctor said, holding out several sheets of paper stapled together, "take this-"

"Thank you, doctor," Frank said hurriedly, snatching the papers and walking off quickly.

As he walked away, he passed a Gengar sitting at a computer, and he backed up to look at the screens overhead. "Any luck on that phone number on the girl's phone, Alex?"

Alex rubbed his eyes with his stubby hand-like paw. _"Not good. The number traces to a burn phone, so my job has just become harder than it needs to be."_

"Well, that sucks. Keep digging."

Frank was about to leave when Alex started in again. _"Hey, did I ever tell you about my side project? I'm working with the commissioner's office to-"_

"Tell me later, OK?" said Frank, not entirely listening.

He marched right to Hopfmar's office, where the door was open. The captain was sitting at his desk, going through some paperwork when Frank knocked on the doorframe. "Boss, those killings today weren't random."

Hopfmar dropped the papers on his desk. "What are you talking about?"

Frank told him about his suspicions.

"That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard in my life," the captain replied. "Give me one very good, and I mean one very good, reason why I shouldn't-"

Frank handed him the M.E.'s report and he read it. "You're shitting me."

"I wish I was, boss," Frank replied, "but that's as clear as day to me."

"I wouldn't be so quick to think that it proves you right," Hopfmar warned, "but I'm going to tell you that you just may have brought in another element to all of this mess." He stood up. "And for that, we have to call on the commissioner."

* * *

After riding the elevator in silence, the two walked to the commissioner's office. Outside the office, a disinterested blonde was twirling her hair with her finger and staring absently into space. Hopfmar cleared his throat, causing her to shake the cobwebs out of her head, look up, and ask, "Here to see the commissioner?"

"Yes, ma'am," the captain said.

She hit an intercom button. "Commissioner, Captain Hopfmar and, uh, some other guy are here to see you."

"Send them in," came a voice at the other end.

Hopfmar and Frank walked to the office and opened the door. An older man with a thin gray mustache was at his desk going through some paperwork, but looked up when he heard the door open.

"Ah, Eddie! Come in!" he exclaimed. "Who's your guest, or rather, OUR guest?"

"This is Detective Frank Caldwell," the captain replied. "He's one of the detectives working the homicides we had this morning. Which is why we're here."

"Well, pull up a seat, gentlemen, and tell me what's going on."

They did, and Hopfmar told him about the murders and Frank's theory, deliberately opting to hold back on the Geodude information for the moment.

"Well, that's all well and good, gentlemen, but I don't see how this involves me."

"The cause of death on Mr. Van Der Lunde was that he was hit from behind by a heavy flying object. Possibly launched. What the Medical Examiner found…. Well, you should see for yourself." Hopfmar nervously nodded towards Frank, who wordlessly handed the commissioner the file that he had taken earlier in the day.

The commissioner read through it, took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes, then put them back on and read it again. Then he looked up. "Is this some kind of joke?"

"I wish it was, sir," Frank replied.

"Because, let's face it, this is the most ridiculous thing I've ever…." He stopped. "Oh, hell. I don't have a choice."

He picked up the phone and began dialing a number. "If a Pokemon is used in the commission of a crime, or if any crime involving Pokemon is committed, the Pokebureau is typically called in to assist, even if the crime is absolutely bizarre like this. I've been sitting on this favor for almost three decades, and I might as well use it while I still have a chance." He paused, then, "Hello, Owen? It's Mack Herndon from the Saffron PD. How're ya doing?"

There was a pause, then he continued: "Yeah, Martha's all right. She's on a business trip and won't be back home until morning. Yeah, otherwise, everything's going fine with us. Look, I gotta talk to you about that old favor of mine…."

Frank couldn't bear to listen to the conversation. This was embarrassing. Not only was his theory going to be laughed at, he had probably just flushed his career down the drain before he had a chance to get it soaring. _I should have just kept my ideas to my fucking self, _he brooded.

The commissioner hung up. "Well, gentlemen, today is your lucky day. The Pokebureau has decided to send an agent to help you on the case."

Frank shook his head and blinked. "Wait, what?"

"Yes. They said would have accepted the call for help anyway because they want to branch out into non-Pokemon related crimes. But in any case, they want to make sure that we wrap these cases, or this case as it may be, as soon as possible. So tomorrow, they'll be sending on the train to Saffron a 'psychic specialist' to assist us."

Outside the office, there could suddenly be heard the yell of, "I'M NOT GOING TO WORK WITH THE GODDAMNED POKEBUREAU! I DON'T NEED THIS BULLSHIT!" There was heavy crashing and even more swearing.

The commissioner raised an eyebrow. "Territorial, isn't he?"

"That's being too kind," sighed Frank.

* * *

Ezra James Coleman hung up his phone. The hacking had gone without a hitch, and it was fortunate for him that he had accessed the police department's phone system. Not just that, he had gotten into Commissioner Herndon's phone and overheard the conversation.

"So, this is how you want to play, eh?" he said to himself, wishing he was talking to the commissioner himself at that moment. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a switchblade. "It will not do to have the police and the Pokebureau meddling in my plans."

As he rotated the handle gently in his hands, he remembered what he heard about the commissioner's wife being gone until morning. It was time to go send a message tonight. Paying a little unexpected visit to the commissioner would be the best way….


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's note: I own only the original characters, and all Pokemon-related trademarks are owned by Nintendo. This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual people, places, or events is purely coincidental.**

**OK, here's the chapter I've been building to for a while.**

**Language and content warning:**

The morning light shone through the window, striking Frank's face as his alarm clock radio blasted his ears with heavy metal. It was how he usually wanted to be awakened, although he could do without his Growlithe and Vulpix constantly yipping.

He dragged himself out of bed and, after eating breakfast and feeding his pets, he took a long, hot shower. He was nervous as hell. Never in his life had he ever worked with anyone from the Pokebureau. He was worried now that he would make a fool of himself. These Pokebureau agents were said to be THE elite investigators. The fact that just one would be helping them with the case was setting Butterfree loose in his stomach.

He got out of the shower, having made it a bit longer and hotter than desired, and as a result, he was also a bit redder than desired. He went naked to the sink and began to brush his teeth, all the while continuing to worry about the upcoming arrival. _Oh, how embarrassing this could end up being._

He continued to fret for a couple of minutes before realizing he had a strand of bloody dental floss in his hands. With a start, he looked in the mirror and saw that he had gotten overly zealous with his flossing. Without thinking, he tossed a capful of mouthwash in his mouth and almost instantly began screaming.

Some time later, his gums sore, his skin feeling overly heated, he parked his car in the department parking lot. He got out, took one step towards the entrance, and got no further, for a flood of Officer Jennys and detectives began to rush for their cars. He spotted Stuart walking out, a stunned look on his face. "What-"

"Get in the car," Stuart ordered, almost robotic. "It's the commissioner. His wife found him dead last night."

"THE FUCK?" yelled a bewildered Frank as he dove in his car, Stuart got in on the passenger side, and they sped away.

* * *

The commissioner's home was taped off and surrounded by forensic techs and officers. Frank and Stuart walked under the tape after showing their badges and entered the house. What Frank saw immediately froze him in his tracks in horror.

The commissioner was lying on the floor, surrounded by a massive pool of his own blood. There were many dark red stains on his shirt where he had apparently been stabbed many, many times, and a ragged slash marred his aged throat. Frank took one look and bolted for the nearest empty evidence bag. Grabbing it, he began to violently throw up.

Once his stomach contents had been involuntarily yet violently purged, he returned to the crime scene. From another room, there was a loud, anguished wailing. He figured that it was the unfortunate widow. Hopfmar was with her, trying to calm her down but losing.

LoMarco walked over. "God DAMN, have-"

"For god's sake, Dom," snapped Stuart, "will you keep it the fuck down? I think Mrs. Herndon deserves to have some dignity left in-"

"OK, OK, jeez," grumbled LoMarco. In a lower voice, he continued, "Some of those poor schmucks out there have been puking their guts out ever since they walked in. I think I counted twelve-"

"Thirteen," interrupted Frank.

"Huh?"

"I'm no good around blood."

"Aw hell, kid," LoMarco said, trying not to be too loud, "how long have you been on the force?"

"How many dead people have we had to get called out to before yesterday?" Frank snapped back.

Before LoMarco could answer, a teary-eyed Hopfmar stepped away from the grieving widow and came over to them. "What do we have?" he asked in a choked-up voice.

LoMarco sighed. "Whoever the sick bastard was that did this, he's smart. No prints. No weapon. Nothing. It's clean as a whistle, except for all of the blood."

Hopfmar shook his head, and Frank could see a teardrop fall to the floor. "Please tell me," he begged Frank, "that this has something to do with your theory."

"I don't know," Frank admitted, "this is so goddamned random. I mean, the other four deaths made sense together, but this?"

* * *

After another hour of fruitless searching for anything that could help them, the detectives and their captain were back in the office. They were all working in silence when a Jenny walked in and whispered something in Hopfmar's ear. He got up. "Excuse me, I believe the Pokebureau agent is here."

No sooner had the captain disappeared around the corner than LoMarco ruptured. "Goddamnit, why did you think we need to have the fucking Pokebureau butting in OUR investigation? We don't need their shit wrecking this all up!"

"That was not my call and you know it," Frank shot back. "It was the commissioner's decision."

"YOUR bullshit theory! That's why the fucking Pokebureau is involved now, asshole!"

"Dom, I swear I'm going to kick you in your flabby jowls if you don't cool it on the profanities before that agent walks in here," groaned Stuart, rubbing his forehead.

"But damn it-"

He never got to finish, because that's when Hopfmar walked back in. "Members of the Saffron City Police Department, I want you to meet Special Agent Victoria Stillwater."

Frank turned and saw the most wondrous sight of his life.

A Gardevoir had followed the captain in. She was wearing a navy blue business suit, the skirt reaching just below the knee. Her blouse was opened partway so as not to block her inherent red chest horn, although it had the effect of bulging slightly in the back of her clothes where the horn came out the other side. And speaking of bulges, there were two highly noticeable ones on her chest around her horn, straining against the fabric of her blouse. Her feet were clad in high heels that matched to color of her suit, and she was carrying a briefcase in one hand. But what stood out the most to Frank was her hair. It was a light blue, not light green like most Gardevoir. The Pokebureau agent was a shiny!

He felt his throat grow tight as he stared at her. Of all the feelings to have on this day, this was not one he had expected.

Hopfmar was still talking. "Agent Stillwater is a Psychic-type Pokemon, and as such, she will need to work with someone who is able to communicate fluently and effectively telepathically-"

LoMarco shot out of his chair. "There is no way in hell I'm going to work with some low-grade goddamn Pokebureau BITCH!" He stormed out, leaving Hopfmar embarrassed. The Gardevoir stood motionless.

Frank quietly stood up. "I'll do it."

"Good," sighed a visibly relieved Hopfmar. "Saves me having to ask you in the first place." Frank walked over to the two. "Agent Stillwater, this is Detective Frank Caldwell. Frank, I believe you heard me introduce Agent Stillwater a moment ago."

Frank timidly held out his hand. "I-it's an honor, ma'am," he stammered.

"_Same here," _she replied, smiling. _"First time I've ever worked with anyone from any of the Kanto police departments."_

"My apologies for Detective LoMarco's behavior earlier," Hopfmar interjected.

"_Meh, it's not that big of a problem. Isn't the first time and probably won't be the last."_ She looked around. _"So, where's all of your files and such?"_

"Right this way," said Hopfmar, leading the two towards another room.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's note: I only own the original characters.**

**Language and violent content warning:**

After Victoria had gone through the last couple of pages of reports, Frank let out a sigh. "I'm assuming you think my theory is pathetic, too."

Victoria set the papers down. _"Of course not,"_ she said. _"To be quite honest, it's the best theory that I can think that would fit most of these."_

Frank was silent for a moment, then, "Oh, come on, tell me what you REALLY think."

"_I AM telling you what I think," _she insisted. _"I can't see any other explanation that works."_

He shook his head. "You don't have to be all diplomatic and try to spare my feelings, Agent Stillwater. If you think it sucks, just come out and say it."

The shiny Gardevoir rubbed her eyes in exasperation. _"Detective, I don't have to spare your feelings because I have no need to do so. The death of the commissioner aside, I agree with you when you think these murders are all connected. And if the commissioner's murder isn't somehow linked in with this, I'll be shocked."_

Frank gave up trying to argue, and the two sat in silence for a few moments.

Then the door burst open, and LoMarco stood halfway in the doorway, panting. "God DAMN, Caldwell, can you believe what the captain sent us to do? He wanted us to follow a possible lead on one of the guns used, and god DAMN, did we find somethin'! Some stupid former Rocket son of a bitch runs guns for a hobby, and we roped the fucker!"

Hopfmar walked up behind him, a weary look on his face. "Yeah. Great. Frank, how about you head to the interrogation room. And take Agent Stillwater with you."

LoMarco spun around. "What the hell are you doing? He's not going to get anything out of that Rocket bastard, especially if he brings that Pokebureau bitch in there with him!"

Victoria rolled her eyes. Frank just sat in an expressionless rage as Hopfmar quietly said, "Don't you have some paperwork to attend to, Dom?"

"Oh come on, captain! They-"

"That was not a suggestion, Dom."

Enraged, LoMarco stormed off. Hopfmar entered the room and dropped a file on the table. "Might want to take care of this now."

Frank picked up the folder and briefly scanned it as he headed for Interrogation, Victoria following close behind. Rocco Bellatore had been a part of the original Team Rocket a number of years ago, but various events, including the initial dissolving of the group, left him like a Feebas out of water until the organization briefly reformed, only for it to crumble in less than two years, partially due to police diligence and partially due to competition from other groups. Once again, Rocco was left stranded until….

Sitting in the interrogation room was a jaded looking man in his thirties, wearing a faded Team Rocket uniform. He twirled his thumbs in boredom but stopped when Frank and Victoria entered.

"You know, the people in this precinct would make piss poor waiters," he said, turning to look at the door. "Ooh, a shiny? For me? You shouldn't have."

Frank kept a glare transfixed on him. "I'm Detective Frank Caldwell, this is Pokebureau Agent Victoria Stillwater. I assume you've been informed of your rights?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Rocco replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Just get this over with. I have too much to do today to bother with this shit."

Frank set several photos of guns on the table in front of him before sitting down. Rocco barely glanced at them. "What is this, Hobby Day?"

"I thought you'd enjoy looking at some of your old merchandise," Frank informed him.

"Don't know what you're talking about. Don't think you do either."

"Cut the crap, Rocco, it's no secret that you're one of the biggest gun-runners in the region. Handguns, assault rifles, sniper rifles- you still sell sniper rifles, don't you?"

"Is this why you idiots hauled me over here, to make a purchase? I only go through certified channels, kid."

Frank simply kept his glare transfixed on him, so he turned to Victoria, who was sitting next to Frank. "Come on, sweetheart, you don't think that cop is as stupid as I think he is, right?"

The Gardevoir remained silent.

"Doesn't say much, does she?" he asked Frank.

Frank quietly shoved the photo of a sniper rifle forward. Rocco snorted. "Is that supposed to mean anything to me?"

"Does it?" Frank replied.

"Hey, no fair replying to a question with another question!"

"Ever enjoy testing the merchandise?"

"What?"

"What I asked. You ever go out and do target practice?"

"Nah. I like my guns to stay as close to virgin quality as possible. Keeps the value up."

"Oh, come on. Certainly you've been tempted."

"Is there a point to this?"

"Like moving targets?"

"What the fuck?"

Frank pressed on. "You know, small animals, cans on strings, girls in town-"

"Wait, what? Is this about that girl who was killed yesterday? 'Cause I had nothing to do with that."

"Sniper rifles are right up your alley. So are semi-automatics."

"I was a crook, but I ain't no fucking killer."

"What's the matter, somebody see you do something illegal so you decided to make sure nobody could put away for good? That you operate these days, Rocco?"

"No! I already told you, I didn't kill nobody!" Rocco was shouting now.

"All right, then where were you yesterday afternoon?"

"In a bar, getting wasted and getting the shit kicked out of me by some idiots."

"Anyone back that up?"

"Uh, yeah, the bartender and anyone else who was in there that day will say I was there!"

Victoria nudged Frank's leg. _"I think you'll have better luck pressing him on that sniper rifle," _she said.

Frank gave her a puzzled look.

"_No, seriously. I'd hit him on that."_

"Hello?" said Rocco. "Anyone there?"

Frank tapped the sniper rifle photo. "Sell any of these lately?"

"Wait, what?"

"Come on, Rocco, I don' have time for your crap. Did you sell any of these lately?"

"What difference does it make?"

"We're talking about people being dead, and all you can say is 'What difference does it make'?"

"I rarely sell any of those guns."

"Define 'rarely.'"

Rocco sighed. "OK, I sold one a couple of days ago."

"Name, Rocco."

"I never ask names, it complicates things-"

"NAME, ROCCO!"

"Guy paid in cash, I don't know his name!"

"Describe him, then!"

Before Rocco could say another word, an older man in a suit threw the door open and walked in, exuding pure arrogance. "I believe you're done torturing my client for your pleasure, detective."

"What the hell? I didn't hire a lawyer!" Rocco exclaimed.

"I was hired by someone on your behalf. We're done here."

Frank launched from his chair. "Now wait just a goddamned minute-"

"You have absolutely nothing to hold my client on, detective," the lawyer informed him haughtily. "And you have nothing to suspect him of, either. If you or any other member of this department continue to harass my client, I will bleed this city's finances dry."

The lawyer grabbed Rocco's arm and forcibly led him out.

Frank slumped to his chair as Hopfmar entered the room. "What the fuck just happened?"

"I never knew Rocco had any friends left to hire an attorney," Hopfmar replied. He then looked at Victoria. "What did you think?"

"_He's telling the truth about not killing anyone yesterday, or any day for that matter,"_ she informed him. _"But he might have sold the gun, and it's a shame he got taken before he could give a description."_

LoMarco rushed over. "You guys let him go? What the fuck?"

"We had no choice," Frank grumbled. "Asshole's lawyer showed up."

"Fuck him!" snapped LoMarco. "You should've kept that Rocket freak holed up until he started crying like a little bitch!"

"That's not how this precinct operates and you know it, Dom," Hopfmar said sternly as he began walking to his office.

LoMarco was enraged and spent the next few moments incoherently gesturing at Frank and Victoria until the phone rang in Hopfmar's office. The captain answered, then, "Excuse me?"

He motioned for LoMarco, Stuart, Frank, and Victoria to come quickly to his office. "What are you talking about?" he asked as he hit the speaker button.

"You know exactly what I am talking about," came the voice at the other end. Frank and Victoria recognized it as Rocco's surprise lawyer. "You ordered your blue-clad minions to put spike strips in the road so we could not leave the city."

"I never ordered for anything like that!" objected Hopfmar.

"You are a horrible liar, Captain."

Frank turned to LoMarco and Stuart. "Check the supply area and the warehouse. Make sure nothing's missing. I'm gonna see if Alex can trace the number."

Hopfmar continued to argue with the attorney. "I'm not a stupid man. There's no way I'd jeopardize an investigation like that!"

"Again, you are a liar. Only the police would have access to something like this."

Frank ran back after telling Alex of his need. "Alex is tracing the call now, boss."

"_Alex?"_ Victoria asked.

"Our techno-Gengar," Frank explained.

An Officer Jenny rushed into the office, panting. "Captain, the storage guard is dead! He's been shot!"

"Oh shit," breathed Frank. He moved to the phone, nudging Hopfmar aside. "Sir, get out of the area. NOW!"

Stuart came running back as well. "Guys, you need to see this. Alex is forwarding it now."

He went to a large screen and keyboard, typing until a window came up. It was a security video. The guard in storage had walked to the back of a delivery truck, opened it, and was suddenly twitching, shot to death by an unseen assailant.

"Oh my God, it's him," Frank worried. To the phone, he yelled, "Damn it, get out of the area! You are not safe there! For God's sake, listen to me!"

"I am done being lied to," came the haughty reply. "I will be filing my case in court tomorrow-"

There was suddenly a sharp _thwip _sound, and a moment later, the line went dead.

"Oh shit," blurted Frank as he ran out of the room, Victoria and the others close behind.

Alex floated up to him. _"I lost the signal before I could finish the track."_

"Alex, stay here and try to find something that may help us identify the truck occupant. Frank, take Agent Stillwater with you and find Rocco, NOW. The rest of us will be right behind you."

* * *

Ezra James Coleman finished taking off the dead delivery driver's uniform and putting his regular clothes back on before setting the stolen truck on fire along with the fake identification that he used to get access to police headquarters. Taking his gun, just recently used to shoot the lawyer he had hired to lead him to the man who sold him the sniper rifle, half a can of gasoline, and a lighter, he walked back to the lawyer's car.

The gun dealer was asleep in the back seat. Coleman tapped the window with the gun, waking him up. The man stretched and yawned. "Yeah? Whaddya want?"

Coleman swung and smashed the window with the gun.

"Hey! What the hell-"

Coleman reached in and shot him in his left knee.

The man began screaming in pain as Coleman took the gas and poured it on him.

"Wh-what are you doing? No! Please don't- I'll do anything- I'll GIVE you anything-"

Coleman lit a small matchbook on fire. "Your silence will be enough, thank you very much."

He tossed the matchbook on the man, igniting the gasoline. He then walked away, listening all the while to the tortured screams as the man's life was completely burnt out of him before the entire car burst into flames.


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's note: I own nothing but the original characters. Nintendo owns everything else.**

**This chapter will hopefully come with somewhat fewer F-bombs than last chapter, haha.**

**That hope notwithstanding, language and content warning:**

Frank tore around the corner at top speed, forcing Victoria to hang onto the door to avoid being tossed through her seatbelt and into the detective's lap. He weaved through traffic, lights and sirens on the car blazing.

"_Are you trying to impress me with your speed or something?" _Victoria asked him.

"No, ma'am, I'm trying to get to Rocco before someone else does," Frank replied.

"_You think it's the same guy?"_

"I KNOW it's the same one." He came to a screeching halt just outside the city limits as two huge pillars of smoke billowed in front of them, their bases colored a distressing yellow-orange. "And we're too late."

Fire trucks and police cars surrounded the area as no fewer than a dozen Wartortles per fire were frantically trying to douse the flames. The human detective and the shiny Gardevoir got out of the car, but it was a while before they were able to approach the scene safely. Victoria shook her head, the glow from the flames causing her skin to shine an abnormal orange. _"I don't think that's the only one we're too late for."_

One of the Officer Jennys trudged up to them. "We got another vehicle on fire," she informed them. "A delivery truck. Got a body in there, but it's burnt bad."

"Anything else?" Frank asked.

"No, it's just a charred mess. Also it looks like the passenger in the backseat of the car is burnt beyond recognition-"

"It's Rocco Bellatore. He was just in Interrogation a short while ago. Where's his attorney? He'd be this older guy-"

"If that's your description, he was shot a short distance from the vehicle. And before you ask, any shoe or boot prints got wiped out."

"Shit." Frank rubbed his head.

"And most of the stuff in the vehicles is melted or burnt completely."

"Double shit."

"The attorney's cellphone seems to be missing, or most of it, anyway. We found a piece of plastic that looks like it may be from a phone, but it's very small, as if someone crushed it with their foot."

"Triple shit." Frank rubbed his head again.

By this time, Hopfmar had arrived and heard the exchange. "Frank, if there's not going to be much here for you to do, you could always take Agent Stillwater and head back to the precinct until we return."

Frank sighed. "Might as well," he said as he and Victoria got in the car and left.

Frank was in a dismayed silence as they drove.

* * *

"_You don't deal with this often, do you?"_

"No, I really don't."

"_Not a high crime rate?"_

"More of not a high murder rate."

Victoria was silent a while. So was Frank, but then a thought popped in his head.

"You know, we're going to be working together a while. Not sure how long."

"_So?"_

"Well, I think we should try to tell us a little bit about each other."

"_Seriously?"_

"If you want me to go first, that's fine by me."

"_Next stop, I'll coin flip you for it."_

"OK, fine then," said Frank as they came to a stop. He pulled a coin out of his pocket. "Heads or tails, no cheating."

"_Tails!"_

Frank flipped the coin and watched it spin briefly in the air before it came down on the top of the dashboard. "Ha! Heads!"

"_Damn!"_

Victoria slouched back in her seat as Frank chuckled. "C'mon, now, time to spill ye olde beans."

The Gardevoir sighed. _"Fine. I was born and raised in captivity. I began my training in the Pokebureau as a Ralts. I have been part of the Pokebureau for three years, which is my chronological age. I eat anything. I love heavy metal music. And while it's really none of your business, I'll tell you this anyway: I am not a virgin. I lost my virginity to a Swampert a few hours after I became a Gardevoir. And I once had sex with a Mightyena." _Frank gave her a quizzical side glance. _"OK, that last one is bogus. Though I've thought about it."_

She took a deep breath. _"OK, your turn."_

Frank took a deep breath. "All right, fine. I have won the badges and defeated the Elite Four and Champions of every region except Unova, although I want to go there someday and win there too. My father was murdered when I was a baby. I have no idea where my mother currently is. I prefer metal as well. And I first had sex when I was in Hoenn. You'll never believe who she was."

"_I'm afraid to guess, but OK. Is she a gym leader?"_

"Maybe I shouldn't tell you," he replied. "Wouldn't be fair to her, I guess."

Victoria snorted. _"Cheater."_

* * *

Ezra James Coleman rubbed his eyes and sighed wearily. It had been a long day and night, between his work on the virus and all the killings. And for him, the worst part of it was that he wasn't finished by any means.

He watched the screens in frustration as the virus he had made broke through every defense he had set up on the computers but came to a screeching halt when it ran into the strongest system of them all: Mewtwotronix. It was said to be the most impenetrable program of all, stymieing attacks the world over. For his plan to work, he would have to work the codes and alter the virus to beat that system as well.

He rubbed his eyes again. It would be hard to stay awake for as long as would be needed.

He turned the chair around and looked at the device on the table behind him: a mix of wires, an older cellphone, and low-grade explosives. It would be perfect to put in a cop car for a message. Maybe used in the car of one of those detectives….

He turned back to the computers. It would be a long, thankless night. But in the end, it would be worth it.

* * *

The Forensics unit had, for the most part, come up empty, leaving Frank frustrated again. Victoria sat and watched him with his head in his hands, an empty glare directed towards the surface of his desk.

Hopfmar broke the silence by walking in. "If nothing can be done tonight, how about you two get some rest. Gonna probably be a long day tomorrow."

Frank and Victoria got up. "'Night."

They walked out, Frank's jacket slung over his shoulder. They stopped at the parking lot. "Need a ride to your hotel or something?" he asked her.

"_Thanks, but I got a rental when I reached the station,"_ she told him.

She walked over to her car, a bright red, high-end imported sports car. Frank took one look at it, looked at his modest vehicle, and immediately felt castrated.

"_And yes, I know how to drive. I'm one of the few Pokemon around with a license."_

"Oh well, good night," he told her as she got in and drove off.

He watched her go, a wistful feeling in his gut. Sighing, he got in his car and headed for home.


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's note: I only own the original characters. Pokemon and related trademarks are owned by Nintendo and Game Freak.**

**Sorry to burst your bubble, XT3, but Frank is full human.**

**I would like to take a moment to thank anyone who has read this story thus far or my first entry in FanFiction, "A Returning," and has reviewed. Those really do mean a lot to me, whether it be praise or constructive criticism. And thanks for bearing with me through all the long delays between chapters.**

**Language, content, and violence warning as we start an insane stretch:**

After a night tormented by a fitful sleep, Frank forced himself out of bed. He simply could not stop thinking about the case as it ate away at him.

Dragging himself to the kitchen table, wearing only his boxer briefs, he made some tea and sat down, staring at his two pets, still asleep. Absent-mindedly, he reached across and picked up a small case and opened it up. In the case were twenty-four badges, all neatly lined up according to region. It was a reminder of better times, or what was better back then.

He let his weary head fall to the table and his mind drifted back to yesterday. That moment where he first laid eyes on Victoria, he felt something inside, something that he simply could not quite explain. It was almost an attraction of sorts, an affection. It seemed strange for him to have these feelings towards a Pokemon, but there they were.

Almost instinctively, he wondered what she was doing at that moment.

* * *

The soft beeping of the alarm clock slowly roused Victoria from a deep slumber. Unlike her Saffron P.D. counterpart, she was able to keep her mind clear of the previous day's unpleasantness. She gently swatted the clock to the floor.

The covers enveloping her naked body had grown warm, and she pushed them away, exposing her pure white skin to the early rays coming through the window. The relative coolness in the air had a soothing effect as well as imparting a pleasurable sensation to her nipples, which began to harden. She yawned and stretched on the bed, her hands instinctively moving to her shoulders. Just as instinctively, they began to slowly travel lower, lightly caressing her breasts as her fingertips glided along the sides of her horn. She felt the lines of her abdomen as she spread her legs wide, feet flat on the mattress. Her palms moved to her inner thighs, glancing her lower lips as she did so and setting off tremors of pleasure within her.

There, she hesitated.

_It's been too long since I or anyone else has touched me there, _she thought wistfully. _But I need to get out and help the Saffron police…._

She raised her head slightly and looked at her lower body, her hands so close to her slit, the morning sunlight dancing on one leg, and a longing that she knew could not be denied much longer.

_Ah, the hell with it. It'll only be a few minutes at most._

She moved her right hand to her opening and began rubbing, gently caressing her soft folds in a somewhat circular motion. She began to squirm on the bed as she pushed a finger in and out, wiggling it around as she did so, teasing the walls of her vagina at an increasingly rapid pace as she felt her orgasm coming on. Her rapid breathing was mixed with high-pitched moans of pleasure as her eyes stared emptily towards the ceiling. Then, with one final arch of her back, she felt herself clench around her finger and she came, soaking the sheets in her arousal.

_Oh god, that was fast. Maybe too fast._

She lay quiet for a few moments, trying to catch her breath as her peak subsided.

"_Well, time to get to work," _she finally said.

She pulled herself up by her elbows and noticed the dark, moist stain on the bed. She let out an uncharacteristically girlish giggle at the sight.

"_Oh, I'm such a naughty little Gardevoir, aren't I?" _she mischievously uttered as she left the bed and began hunting for clothes.

* * *

With a series of snorts and grunts, Ezra James Coleman woke with a start. Shaking his head a few times to reach a more awakened state, he scanned the screens in front of him. Much to his dismay, the virus had, in spite of furious and delicate modifications, again failed to slip past Mewtwotronix.

"Well, fuck," he mumbled. There was more work that needed to be done.

He turned in his chair and sat staring at the bomb on his table for several minutes.

"Might as well have some fun with this," he decided as he got up and walked over to his diabolical device. Steadying himself, he gently picked it up. It was a delicate thing and one screwup would either leave him a mess of blood and pulverized internal organs or ruin the bomb to the point where it wouldn't go off when he tried to trigger it.

He carefully walked, knowing exactly where it would go.

* * *

As Frank pulled in the parking lot, he saw Victoria leaning against her car, seemingly waiting for him. She was now wearing a light blue dress jacket and a very low cut white tank top, so cut because of her horn. She also had a matching light blue short business skirt that only went up to just above her knees.

In short, she looked stunning.

"Is it safe to assume you slept better than I did?" he asked as he walked up to her.

"_Maybe I did, maybe I didn't," _she replied in a teasing voice as they walked together towards the building.

What they saw as soon as they got to Frank's level was bad. LoMarco had his jacket and tie off, his sleeves rolled up, and his face red with rage.

"Goddamnit, we had the guy and you let him go!" he was screaming at Hopfmar.

"Dom, he wasn't our man and you know it," was the captain's reply.

"BULLSHIT!" LoMarco screamed. "That little motherfucker was a guilty as all hell, and you let him go and kill himself so we couldn't put him away for good! What the fuck happened to your balls, man?"

Then he spotted Frank and Victoria stopped in their tracks, more or less, by his outburst.

"It was you, wasn't it?" he snarled, stomping towards the Gardevoir. "You got everyone here poisoned into letting freaks like him get off, don't you?"

He suddenly grabbed her by the front of her jacket and lifted her partway off the ground. "Well, now he's dead, and a whole bunch of other people are dead, AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT, YOU FILTHY POKEBUREAU WHORE!"

He thrust her forward and down and she crashed to the floor.

And that's when Frank snapped.

In a flash, he was all over LoMarco, tearing at his face and throat before the larger man grabbed him and literally tossed him onto Stuart's desk about a foot away. Things fell to the floor, including a very fragile paperweight, which shattered. Frank skidded over the top of the desk and landed face first on the fragments, feeling a piece slice the flesh above his right eyebrow.

Enraged, LoMarco spun on his heels. "Fuck you. Fuck you. Fuck ALL of you." Then he stormed off. A few moments later, he was out of the building.

* * *

In an effort to calm himself down, LoMarco drove to one of the less desirable parts of town. There, prostitutes tended to ply their trade mostly unchecked.

He spotted two of them, a blonde with a coat too long for the weather and her T-shirt and short skirt, and a darker-looking girl with a top that exposed her slightly soft midsection. He pulled over and lowered the passenger-side windows. "Well, well, well, what are you two ladies doin' in a place like this?"

The blonde leaned on the frame of the rear of the passenger side while her companion leaned in the front end door. "I thought we were looking for you," the darker girl said, " but now I'm not sure."

"Well, I can make you more sure," he told them.

"Really?" the blonde replied in a skeptical yet sultry tone.

"Well how about you girls climb in and find out?"

The blonde merely put her hand on the door handle as the other girl giggled. And then she saw the wires and her expression changed.

"Uh, mister," the blonde said, trying not to panic, "you have a bomb in your car."

"Well, duh," LoMarco replied, "I AM the bomb!"

"I don't mean figuratively. You have a literal bomb in your car and need to get out NOW."

"Well, no shit, my pants are about to explode right now!"

"No, I mean a bomb that could explode and-"

Then there was a ringing, and to her horror, she saw a glowing through the fabric of the back seat.

"RUN!" she screamed as she grabbed the other girl's arm.

They had barely gone three steps before the blast sent them flying. The hard pavement met them several feet away as the darker girl began screaming that her kneecap was broken. It took everything the blonde had to cover them both from the burning shrapnel raining from the sky.


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or their related trademarks.**

**Language and violence warning:**

As soon as LoMarco stormed out, Stuart wasted no time helping Frank to his feet. Blood was flowing into the man's eye from landing on the shards of the glass paperweight. Frank looked and saw Victoria getting up.

"You OK?" he asked her.

She gave him a look of disbelief. _"Am _I _OK?"_ she replied, bewildered. _"YOU'RE the one with the damn gash over your eye, not me! Compared to you-"_

"Oh great," came the groan. "How bad is it?"

"I wouldn't say it's a gusher," Stuart began, "but…."

Frank immediately started digging through his desk. "Well, let me just find some bandages and-"

"It's a bit worse than bandage-fixable, Frank."

"OK then." He continued searching until he found a small tube, then walked straight for the men's restrooms. "I'll be right back."

He entered, then stopped at the sink. Blood trickled down his face as he ran the water from the faucet, trying to clear his face and eye as the water stained red. Eventually, he got the bleeding to slow considerably, almost to a total stop, as he dried his face with several paper towels.

Victoria walked in as he started to unscrew the top of the tube. _"Mind if I ask what that is?"_

"Glue."

"_Glue?"_

"Yeah, it's an old trick I learned once while working undercover. You use a little bit of the stuff that's supposed to glue your skin together in a couple of seconds if you're not careful, and you carefully glue the cut shut."

"_That's the strangest damned thing I've ever heard."_

"Well, it works, though," Frank informed her as he carefully held the cut edges together. From a distance, she could see the glue slightly glistening against his skin. He glanced up at her reflection. "Tell me something. Is it a habit of yours to follow men into the bathroom?"

She snorted. _"You wish."_

"I didn't mean anything by it, I was just asking."

"_Sure you were."_

He gave her a disgusted look.

"_OK, so you didn't."_

"That's better." He put a bandage over the wound. "That's insurance in case the glue fails."

"_Sounds like someone's in deep shit for his temper tantrum. Your captain is talking about taking his badge as soon as he gets back, IF he gets back."_

"Yeah, he just chose the wrong time to go blow off some steam. Don't know where he is and don't really care right now."

There was a distant noise, almost like a muffled thump.

"What the hell was that?" Frank wondered aloud as he and the Gardevoir left the restroom.

The precinct was in almost a total state of chaos. Hopfmar was on the phone talking as calmly as he could while Stuart was barking orders all around.

"What the hell is going on?" Frank yelled to him.

"Car bomb in the red light district," he yelled back. "One dead, two injured. We're going now, Frank. Agent Stillwater, you may want to tag along."

* * *

Medics were loading one girl on a stretcher as the detectives and the Pokebureau agent arrived on the scene. It looked bad: a rather non-descript shell of a car with badly charred remains inside. Frank, Stuart, and Victoria went under the tape, and no sooner did they do so than Frank spotted something on the ground.

"_Looks like a license plate," _Victoria remarked. _"Surprising that the number is still readable."_

Frank picked it up and nearly dropped it again in shock. He looked at the others. "It's Dom."

"That's it, I'm out of here," Stuart immediately replied, turning on his heel and walking off.

Frank walked swiftly and cut him off before he could duck under. "The hell are you going?"

"You think I'm going to help find out who blew that fucker sky-high, forget it. Whoever got rid of that homophobic guttersnipe just did the world a favor."

"He was a cop, Stuart."

"And the worst one in the region. I'm not gonna cry over him."

"He's still a cop, Stuart. Whoever killed him likely killed the commissioner and everyone else we've been finding dead lately. And unlike you, I may have hated the bastard but I'm treating this as an attack on ALL of us." Frank began to walk back. "This has gotten personal now, and I don't care how much of a dick he was in life."

The blonde was standing off to one side as Frank approached her. "Miss, I'm Detective Frank Caldwell, Saffron P.D.. You said you saw the bomb before it went off?"

"Yeah," she said, her voice betraying the fact that she was suffering from a headache from the blast. "I recognized the wiring."

"Recognized?"

"I served in a explosives defusing unit in the army until I got hurt during a training exercise. I didn't stick around after my enlistment expired, but I kinda regret it because at least then I had a job. Not many people are looking to hire someone who cut wires for a rather dangerous living."

"Did you check the police departments?"

"They weren't hiring, simple as that. This isn't a pleasant job, but-"

"Tell you what," Frank interrupted as he flipped to a blank spot in his notepad. "Why don't you give me your name and number and I can call around, see if I can do you a favor? One of the departments has gotta be looking for someone to work bomb tech."

"Sure, why not," she replied. "Has to be better than this, right?"

* * *

Victoria walked over to the blackened remains of the car and its owner. She looked in and saw LoMarco's corpse in a twisted position, almost like he was reaching for something before the force of the explosion sent what was left of him backwards.

She straightened up as a sudden vision, almost like a psychic flashback, came to her.

It was suddenly moments before the detonation. She heard a cellphone ringing and the blonde immediately screaming "RUN!" as she pulled the other girl with her. At the same time, LoMarco heard the ringing and, out of curiosity, he began to look around and looked in the back, but never noticed where it was coming from.

Then there was an explosion as the girls flew further away and the car was engulfed in flames.

"_Oh my god," _she realized in horror. _"He never even saw it coming…."_

"Are you all right?"

Frank's voice brought her to reality. _"I'm sorry, I just had a vision of what happened."_

"And?"

She shook her head sadly. _"He never saw it coming, Frank."_

Frank sighed. "That sounds like Dom, all right."

* * *

Alex repeatedly ran the security tape back and forth. _"If that bomb was in the car, it was put there someplace else,"_ he said. _"All this shows is what Agent Stillwater appears to have already seen."_

"Great," Frank said, sarcasm clear in his voice.

"_Any idea where the bomb was before it went off?" _Victoria asked.

"_I'm still looking. Between that and my little pet project, I have yet to get away from this computer today."_

"_Pet project?"_

"_Yeah, I'm trying to create an anti-virus program for department use. My goal is to make it powerful enough to withstand any virus imaginable. Heck, I want it to be stronger than Mewtwotronix."_

"_Sounds like quite the undertaking, Alex."_

The Gengar let loose his evilly mischievous grin. _"Sure, but if it works great here, I may just sell it for public usage. Could make a huge dent in the market with something like this."_

"Meanwhile," Frank said, trying to mask his amusement, "you'd best keep trying to figure out where LoMarco's car got rigged."

Alex said nothing as he went back to poring over security footage and Frank and Victoria walked away.

* * *

Frank and Victoria walked out to the parking lot after fruitlessly searching through some of the wreckage that was brought in. The sun had begun to set lower in the sky, causing the shadows to slant much more dramatically.

"_Well, this isn't what I had in mind when I woke up today," _Victoria remarked.

"Join the club," was the wry reply.

They stood in silence for a while. Frank wanted to ask something, but he hesitated, wondering how she would react.

Finally, he asked, "Did you have anything planned for tonight?"

The question seemed to catch her off-guard. _"Uh, no, I didn't."_

"Well, what I was wondering was, um, maybe you'd, uh, you know, want to get a drink or something?"

"_You asking me out, detective?"_

"Well, no, I just-"

The Gardevoir chuckled. _"No need to be embarrassed about it, Frank. Hate to say it, though, but tonight I gotta decline. I think I just want to rest my head without the aid of alcohol right now."_

"Well, OK then."

He watched as she waved at him before she got in her car and drove off. Then he went back in the building.

* * *

_Maybe I should have accepted._

_Oh, come on, Victoria, those thoughts are ridiculous._

_Are they? He's not exactly unattractive, you know._

These thoughts went through Victoria's head as she drove.

She reflected back on her masturbation from earlier in the day and remembered how long it had been since she had actually been in love with someone. Actually, she wasn't sure if she'd ever been in love.

The car came speeding at a fiery pace down the road, its driver focused intently on his target.

As he approached the intersection, still gaining speed, he suddenly saw a stray Meowth start across the street.

"SHIT!"

He swerved to avoid it, then saw his target.

He would not get the direct hit he wanted, but he was going to strike nonetheless.

Victoria approached the green light and continued driving when she heard a speeding engine.

From the corner of her eye, she saw the car just before it slammed at full speed into the side of her car at an angle, and as her car was shoved several feet further, her head slammed into the side of the steering wheel before everything went black.


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or related trademarks.**

**Language warning:**

Frank stared blankly at the chunks of car in front of him. The forensics crew had not yet brought in anything they could positively identify as bomb fragments, and the evidence Meowths had no luck either.

So there Frank was, looking at something, he wasn't sure at all of what.

He despised LoMarco. It wasn't full-fledged hatred like what Stuart harbored, but it was close. LoMarco had always held Frank in low esteem, and he had always gone out of his way to physically and verbally emphasize that fact.

Stuart's voice brought him out of his train of thought.

"We got called to a wreck downtown, Frank," he said. "Let's go."

* * *

Frank dreaded going to wrecks. More often than not, there was always a grotesquely twisted mess that used to be a vehicle, with either the injured or dead lying a distance away. Predictable, yet unpleasant.

But as he caught sight of this wreck, everything for him went cold with horror.

"OH MY GOD, VICTORIA!" he screamed as he frantically unlocked and opened the door. Stuart, who had been driving, slammed on the brakes in shock.

The driver's side door had been torn off by the fire department so they could get Victoria out of the car safely. Medics had rushed to her side to load her onto a stretcher to get her on the ambulance with as little delay as possible. As Frank, running at top speed yet feeling like he was stuck on a nightmare treadmill, sped to her side, he could see them put the oxygen mask over her mouth and almost non-existent nose.

"Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, oh my god," Frank kept repeating in a frightened monotone as they wheeled her to the ambulance.

Hopfmar ran to the ambulance to try to cut him off. "Frank, please-"

"I'm going with her, Captain."

"Frank, I can't let you-"

"I'M GOING WITH HER, SIR!"

Hopfmar sighed wearily as Frank blew past him and got in the ambulance, getting as close to the unconscious Gardevoir as possible. "Fine, but stay out of their way, all right?"

Frank did not indicate acceptance. "All I want to know is what happened." He was clearly choking back tears as he spoke as the doors shut and the ambulance drove away.

Hopfmar turned to Stuart, who had a look of worry in his eyes. "Let's get to work," he said. "This is now the department's highest priority case. I want every available resource poured into solving this. I want every single person we can get down here now. And contact Alex and tell him to find any and all security footage. We need to nail this son of a bitch right away."

He paused to take a deep breath. "Before Frank goes haywire."

* * *

The medics in the ambulance were yelling things that Frank did not understand as he sat and watched them work on trying to keep the still unresponsive Victoria alive. He looked for all the world like a small, frightened child as the vehicle raced down the highway, sirens and lights blazing.

They reached the Emergency Room of the combined PokeCenter and hospital after what seemed to Frank like an eternity. More medics, as well as a couple of Nurse Joys and doctors, opened the doors and helped Victoria out, Frank bringing up the rear as they rushed inside the building and began yelling out more stats and orders that the detective knew nothing about.

Before he could follow them into one room, one of the medics stepped in front of him to block entry. "I'm sorry, sir, but we can't let you in there."

"But that's my partner in there!"

"I know, detective, but you need to let us do our jobs now. Please go sit down."

"PLEASE!"

"We're doing everything we can, now go sit down, detective!"

"But I need to-"

"GO. SIT. DOWN!"

Frank desperately wanted to protest again but didn't. Instead, he morosely walked to a chair and slumped down and cried.

_Your partner, Frank? Really?_

He almost jumped upon hearing his voice in his head.

_I've been working together with her on this case, haven't I? _he replied to himself.

_Get real, OK, junior? She's not from the same department as you. Hell, she's not even the same _species.

_So what._

_Then why are you crying, hmm?_

_I don't like death. Or close proximity to it._

_Eh, who can blame you for that? Nobody normal likes death._

_Then why the fuck are you bothering me about it?_

_Oh, nothing much. I was just bemused at the fact that you're crying over a Pokemon you barely even know._

_Well, excuse me for being sensitive!_

_Cut the crap, Frank. You know why you're crying. It's because you're in love._

_What, I…. No!_

_Oh, please. I saw how you looked at her when she first came in. It's a wonder you didn't have a full-blown raging boner yesterday._

_WHAT? _The conversation in his head was starting to unsettle him greatly.

_Face it, Frank: you're cryin' and she's dyin'. And you're crying because you didn't get the chance to do her._

"Oh, this is bullshit!" he subconsciously muttered.

_No it's not and you know it. You're upset because you'll never get the chance to get her all hot and bothered and begging for you and hear her moaning your name with every movement._

_Shut up!_

_But I guess that's what happens to anyone you're in love with. You get close, and life screws up and you lose them one way or another._

_SHUT UP!_

_Remember your last girlfriend? You had her arrested in that undercover operation you were part of._

"Shut up!"

_Oh well. Maybe they'll let you see Victoria's bruised and bloodied corpse in a few minutes. Maybe you can kiss her then, but you'll probably mess that up too._

"Shut the fuck up!"

_Fascinating word choice, that._

"SHUT UP!" Frank launched out of his chair and ran full speed for the door, screaming and crying as he ran out and collapsed on the ground. "SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!"

He was reduced to a weeping, hysterical pile on the pavement-

"Detective?"

"Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up-"

"Detective?" The voice was clearer now, and a lot more imposing. Frank slowly looked up to see a massive black man in a white coat and scrubs standing over him. "Agent Stillwater is going to be all right. She has a lot of bruising and cuts, and she appears to be unconscious from hitting her head on something in the car, but they got her stabilized. Do you want to go see her?"

Frank faintly nodded.

"Are you all right, detective? You were a bit of a mess when I came out here."

Frank started to get to his feet and the doctor helped steady him. "I'll be fine now, thanks."

They walked slowly back inside the hospital and to Victoria's room.

* * *

She lay in the bed, unresponsive, ugly dark blotches marring her beautiful snow white skin. All sorts of equipment had been hooked up to her. Frank took a couple of steps forward, then fell to his knees and put his arms around her as best as he could with the bed in the way and began crying uncontrollably again.

Hopfmar walked into the room several minutes later. By then, Frank was sitting with his back against the wall, still crying.

"Frank, can I speak to you outside?" the captain asked.

Frank wordlessly got up and followed him out.

Once they were in the hall, Hopfmar spoke. "Frank, go home. Get some rest."

"I can't," Frank replied, still choked up.

"I know this is really getting to you, but you need to go home and calm yourself."

"I want at least two officers outside here at all times if I leave."

"That can be done, but you need to go home, Frank."

Without another word, Frank turned and staggered away.

* * *

He did not go home, however.

He walked quietly back to the precinct and wandered upstairs and sat down at his desk, just staring at whatever was there. He glanced around and saw he was alone, so he walked towards Alex's computer. The Gengar had already gone home for the night, so Frank went back to his desk and started typing and clicking things until he managed to access a traffic camera feed.

It was the camera that was on the intersection where Victoria was hit, and in horror he watched the wreck occur as the other driver slammed into her car at an angle before driving away. Almost robotically, he backed the video up and re-watched it several times. Soon he was crying again.

"Frank, I thought I told you to go home."

Hopfmar's voice caught him by surprise.

"I can't," Frank replied in a faint voice.

"Frank, you're a complete shambles right now. Go home. It's not a request, it's an order. It's for your own good."

Frank was too weary and miserable to argue. He left the precinct drove home, walked past his sleeping pets, brushed his teeth, undressed, fell on the bed, and cried himself to sleep.

Or what he hoped was sleep.


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's note: I only own the original characters.**

**I have a feeling this may not be the best chapter I've written. And that may be an understatement at the very LEAST.**

**In fact, this chapter may suck badly. Thankfully I'll get to much better stuff soon.**

**Language and violence warning:**

The woods became a raging inferno as the flames swept through the trees and undergrowth. Frank ran desperately to avoid catching on fire as he frantically searched for Victoria, calling out her name, the fear evident in his voice.

He ran and ran, but she was nowhere to be found. The heat seared his skin as the feeling of panic grew worse and worse.

Then he heard the scream.

He stopped in his tracks and looked around wildly.

And to his absolute horror, he saw her.

She was trapped in what seemed like an endless sea of fire as the brush around her burned hotter and hotter. What tears were in her eyes were drying up almost instantly.

"_Frank…."_

Before she could say anything more or before he could react, she was engulfed in a rush of flames.

He tried to move but his feet were stuck in the brush below him, and all he could do was watch helplessly as her screams of pain grew deader and deader as she slumped to the ground, a tortured living cinder.

Then Frank woke up, saw the darkness that was his room, and began crying profusely again.

_You know why this has been happening to you all night, right?_

It was that voice in his head again.

_Good Lord, not you again._

_That didn't answer my question._

_You don't deserve an answer, you son of a bitch._

_You know why you keep having those nightmares tonight, yes? She's DEAD, Frank._

_No, she's not._

_Yes, she is. _

_No, she ISN'T!_

_Give it up, Frank. She's dead. She's dead and you never got a chance-_

_Go to hell._

_No._

"Fuck you, I'm done with your shit," he mumbled as he got out of bed. He had given up on sleep, especially since it was well after 5:30.

_You know I'm right._

Frank said nothing in reply.

_She's dead. Dead and gone away._

Frank remained silent.

_Ignoring me won't make me go away._

Frank silently got dressed and grabbed his car keys and walked out of the house.

* * *

The first rays of sunlight had not yet cleared the treetops as he pulled into the parking lot of the hospital. He looked around but did not see either Hopfmar or Stuart's cars anywhere. Taking a deep breath, he made his way to the entrance.

It only took a couple of moments to locate Victoria's room as there were two uniformed Officer Jennys standing watch outside. He flashed his badge and entered.

She lay there as before, hooked up to various machines, unconscious. The bruises stood out far too much for Frank's liking. He got down on his knees, carefully took her hand in his, and gently began rubbing it.

_Please don't die on me, Victoria, _he thought. _I don't think I can live with myself if you did._

He stayed there, caressing her hand, trying desperately to stay awake, fearful for what might happen if he didn't.

After what seemed like an eternity but was really a little over half an hour, he suddenly felt her stirring. Her head tossed around on the pillow as she slowly opened her eyes. Frank let out a sigh of relief and let go of her hand.

"_Are you OK?" _she asked, drowsily.

Frank smiled, trying to hold back the tears in his eyes. "I'll be fine."

"_How long have I been knocked out?"_

Frank looked at the clock on the wall. "Uhm, it's about 6:17 right now."

"_And I left the precinct when?"_

"I can't remember for sure."

She somewhat slumped against her pillow and sighed. _"Did you catch the motherfucker who hit me yet?"_

Her words took Frank aback slightly. "Uh, no. And he isn't showing up on security tape either."

Victoria took several deep breaths that sounded so much like sighs to Frank.

Then she slowly and unsteadily swung one leg over the railing of her bed.

"Wh-what are you doing?"

"_Leaving. What does it look like I'm doing?"_

"B-but you can't leave, the doctors haven't cleared you to leave!"

"_FUCK the doctors. I've got work to do."_

She got herself over the railing but lost her footing and crashed to the floor.

"Victoria, please, you're in no condition-"

She pulled herself up using the railing. _"Shut up and see if I have my clothes here somewhere," _she told him.

Frank sighed. "Victoria, you just came out of a coma. You can't do this-"

"_DON'T FUCKING TELL ME WHAT I CAN'T DO!"_

Frank reluctantly turned and began searching around the room as the Gardevoir walked haltingly towards the door. He found nothing.

"_The hell with it," _Victoria replied. _"Give me your shirt."_

"What?"

"_I SAID GIVE ME YOUR SHIRT, GODDAMNIT!"_

Frank hastily started to unbutton his shirt as she started to unsteadily pace impatiently. _"Hurry up, man, we don't have all day! Longer you take, the more likely it is that that asshole gets away!"_

He tossed his shirt to her and she wrapped it around her lower torso, which was not very well covered by her thin hospital gown. Then, before he could stop her, she stormed out the door as best as she could.

Outside, he could hear her telepathic yelling as she argued with various nurses and the black doctor that he had met the night before. From the tone of the whole thing, he could tell she was winning.

After a few minutes, she stormed back in. _"I made them let me sign my release. Let's go. NOW."_

"Are you sure?" Frank asked with not a little hesitation.

The Gardevoir shot him a look.

"OK, fine," he sighed.

Victoria walked as fast as she could to the parking lot, with Frank trying hard to catch up while not running into anyone or anything. _"Where's your car?" _she asked.

"Stop a minute and I'll lead you over there," was the reply.

Victoria did so and immediately had to hold onto the doorframe to avoid falling over. "Are you sure you don't want to-"

"_Get me to the car so I can get to the hotel and get me my own clothes," _she snapped.

Frank led her towards his car and opened the door for her to get in.

* * *

She had changed into a blue pantsuit and left her blouse fairly open as they drove downtown. Frank's shirt was in the back seat, while she had left the paper gown at the hotel. They had been silent the entire time until they got to the scene of the collision. _"Stop the car," _Victoria said, finally breaking the silence.

Frank pulled over short of the tape and they got out.

As they walked over, Hopfmar cut them off. "Please tell me they didn't let you out," he said to Victoria.

"_I didn't give them a choice. Besides, I refuse to miss work for health reasons if I can avoid it."_

She pushed the captain away as she went under the tape, stumbling a bit and causing Frank to grab her so she wouldn't fall all the way to the pavement. She stayed close to the ground for a few moments, trying to steady herself before continuing.

They stood by the markers that the forensics unit had laid down where they had located anything. Victoria took a look around, seeing fragments of her battered rental lying on the ground, and suddenly was hit by another flash.

She stood, stunned, as she saw herself driving down the street, completely unaware that there was another car trying to correct its direction before it slammed into her at high speed. But for some reason, it seemed as if nobody was driving the other vehicle.

"_I can't see his face," _she said, numb.

"What?" asked Frank, who hadn't been paying attention.

"_I said I couldn't see his face," _she repeated. _"Not in my vision."_

"Maybe it's because you've had a rough few hours," Frank suggested.

"_No, I just couldn't see him, it's almost like he wasn't-"_

She suddenly fell silent.

"Wasn't what?"

Then, to the human detective's shock, his Pokebureau counterpart fell prostrate to the ground, crying.

"_OH, FRANK, I ALMOST DIED LAST NIGHT!" _she wailed. _"I ALMOST DIED!"_

She stayed there, sobbing. Frank got down on his knees and held her close, trying to choke back tears himself. "You didn't."

* * *

After several minutes, Victoria was able to get to her feet with help from Frank, and together, they walked away from the scene. Hopfmar was waiting on the other side of the tape.

"Well, now that we know you're still alive," he asked Victoria, "how do we want to play this? Tell the press we're still not releasing the condition of the victim, or tell them you're dead and hope it draws out the perp?"

"_Mum's the word. We say anything now, he may fade away. Saying nothing keeps him going. At least that's my hunch."_

"Frank?"

"I agree," Frank quietly said. "I only hope we don't get more casualties doing that."

* * *

Dr. Richard McClellan allowed his considerable frame to push through the door of the hospital as his day came to an end. It had been a long several hours, between the Gardevoir being rushed in to her rushing out after she recovered from her coma. He had to admit to himself that she was doing a lot better than he or anyone else thought she would, although she seemed a little unsteady on her feet. He wondered when it would set in that she had had a near-death experience. Some patients took that sort of thing badly.

As he walked through the parking garage towards his car, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed his home. After several rings, his wife picked up.

"Hey, baby girl," he said, "I'm on my way home."

"Great!" she replied. "The kids have been waiting for your shift to end and they're gonna drive me nuts."

He chuckled. "Sounds like a normal night if you ask me."

"So I was thinking that tonight-" she began.

He never saw the hooded figure step out of the shadows, raise a silencer-equipped pistol, and fire one shot into the doctor's forehead.

The phone fell to the concrete as the doctor's body fell with a thud.

"-And maybe we could watch a movie on the TV after the kids go to bed. I don't know. What do you think?

"Richard? Are you there?

"Richard?

"_Richard?"_


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's note: This is a work of fiction. Any resemblances to any persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. Also, I do not own Pokemon or related trademarks, which are owned by GameFreak and Nintendo.**

**Language warning:**

"_Stop. Just… turn it off."_

Victoria watched as Alex quickly shut off the security camera footage of the wreck. _"Sorry,"_ he muttered.

Victoria said nothing, only walked back to Frank's desk and slumped down in his chair. Alex sighed and glanced up at Frank, who had also been watching. _"She's upset, isn't she?"_

"Can't say as I blame her." The corners of his mouth contorted a bit in pity. "I would be too if that happened to me."

He walked to his desk, grabbed a spare chair, and sat down next to her. "Are you going to be OK?" he asked her.

"_Eventually,"_ she said in an empty voice. _"After I get through one hell of a mood roller coaster, perhaps."_

They sat there quietly for some time, not moving, Victoria trying to stay calm after the mood swings she had had throughout the course of the day, Frank feeling alternately relieved that she had lived and upset with himself because it had happened in the first place.

It was Hopfmar who broke the silence as he stopped by the desk. "Do you realize how long you two have been sitting there?"

Frank absent-mindedly looked at the clock as Victoria shook her head.

"It's well past five o'clock. Alex tells me you've been doing this for hours."

"_Sorry,"_ Victoria mumbled.

Hopfmar sighed. "The two of you should have just taken the rest of the day off. I'd rather you got your emotions under control and your heads cleared so you'll be of more help tomorrow."

"You sure?" Frank asked.

"The two of you, get out. Relax. Soothe your nerves. It'll do you both some good."

Frank felt like arguing but didn't. Instead, he and Victoria quietly got up and walked out together.

* * *

When they got to his car, Victoria rested her forehead in the palm of her hand, propping her arm on the top of the vehicle. _"I'm sorry I've been so much trouble lately,"_ she said.

"No, you haven't," he assured her. "You've helped out so much, and you were pretty much the first one to believe in my theory. You haven't been any trouble at all."

"_You have one cop dead because of me, I almost got killed last night, I'm sure you were worried sick about me and couldn't sleep-"_

"LoMarco's death wasn't your fault. None of us had any way of knowing that was going to happen."

Victoria just sighed and let her head fall on the car.

"You know, I think I might know one way to get your mind off of this," he persisted. "Since we have nothing else to do tonight, I was wondering if maybe you'd want to go out for a drink or dinner or something. All on me."

She lifted her head to look at his soft smile. _"You would?"_

"Of course."

She reached for the door handle. _"That drink sounds very welcome right now," _she said as she got in.

"Good. I'll drop you off at the hotel if you'd like, in case you wanted to wear something else."

"_I was just about to ask if you could."_

The gentle smile stayed on Frank's face, although Victoria could see that the past couple of days, and the past twenty-four hours in particular, had taken a physical and mental toll on the man. The dark circles under his eyes were almost the same color of her bruises, and if there had been a luster in those eyes when she first met him, it had long since been replaced by a certain pained weariness.

* * *

After dropping her at the hotel, promising to be back in half an hour but being told to make it a full one, Frank drove back home. His two pets were waiting for him, pouncing him and happily yipping. He fed them, then went to his bedroom and dug through his closet. He never had much of a need for a lot of clothes. A couple of nice suits, his dress uniform which he almost never wore but would have to for LoMarco's funeral, and some other things hung on hangers. He grabbed one suit and went to the master bathroom.

He turned on the shower, then started undressing. He looked up momentarily and saw his rather haggard face in the mirror.

_God, I look like shit,_ he thought. _Can't wait to get this case over with._

He stepped in the shower and suddenly started chuckling. "Where be your jibes now, you son of a bitch?" he said to what seemed like no one in particular.

_Shut up, _replied that voice in his head.

_I told you she wasn't going to die._

_I said shut up._

_She's going to be just fine._

_Stop it._

_And now I'm going to take her out and have some fun tonight._

_You're mean._

_EAT IT, BITCH!_

_I hate you._

_SUCK IT ALL UP, BUDDYBOY!_

The voice didn't reply. Frank couldn't help but laugh. "Stupid fuckhead."

* * *

Frank pulled into the parking lot of the hotel and was stunned to see the shiny Gardevoir walk out.

She was wearing a dark blue dress with spaghetti straps and a daringly low-cut neckline, which showed off a lot more than just her chest horn. The dress came up midway on her calves, but it was split up her right side going all the way up to mid-thigh. As Frank opened her door and she got in, he noticed that it didn't have much in the way of a back. Her tiny feet seemed poured into a pair of powder blue stilettos that matched her hair very nicely.

"Would it be OK for me to say that I'm speechless right now?" he asked, a nervous chuckle leaking in.

"_Why, detective, I would be flattered to hear you say that," _she sweetly replied.

Frank blushed a bit.

"_Notice anything missing, by the way? I used some cover-up to hide the bruising. Thought it might make me a bit more presentable in public."_

"You would have looked just fine to me, Victoria."

"_I know, but most people are not like you. They see a Pokemon in public with visible injuries like that, they get suspicious."_

"Well, they don't know you as well as I do, now, do they?"

They laughed as they pulled up to the restaurant, where a valet was waiting to take the vehicle. Frank had opened the door and was stepping out when his cellphone rang. "Damn it. Betcha the captain wants to ask me something about something again."

Victoria unbuckled her seat belt and opened the door as Frank picked up. "Caldwell." She looked over the top of the car and saw her partner's face change to a rather tired look. "Where?"

Knowing that it was bad, she quietly got back in the car and put her seat belt back on. "Yeah, she's with me. We'll be right over."

He got back in. "I'm gonna have to cancel the reservations. The doctor that treated you is dead in the hospital parking garage. And I think I know who got him."

* * *

Stuart got one look at Frank and Victoria as they flashed their badges and went under the crime scene tape and nearly dropped his camera. "Did we interrupt something?"

"_No, but somebody else did,"_ replied Victoria as she and Frank got pairs of latex gloves.

The doctor was lying on the pavement, somewhat contorted, a hole right between his eyes. There were markers all around as the Medical Examiner inspected the body. The M.E. looked up. "Ah, good to see you, Detective, although I wish it had been under better circumstances." He looked at Victoria. "Might I be so kind as to inquire as to whom your companion is?"

Frank handled the introductions.

"Ah, a Pokebureau agent," said the M.E.. "It is an honor."

"_Who called it in?" _she asked.

"One of the nurses," Hopfmar answered as he walked over to them. "Said he had left a couple of hours earlier, but when she got of her shift-"

"Captain? You might want to see this," Stuart called.

Hopfmar, Frank, and Victoria walked over to where the other detective was standing.

"Whoever shot him should have done a better job trying to clean up," he said, pointing at a dark red streak. "Because he was shot here and dragged by the feet first. That's why there's this trail of blood, because his head was on the ground still. I think the shooter must have seen that and decided to pull him by the arms."

"Anyone notify next-of-kin?" Frank asked.

"We just called his wife. She should be here any minute." Hopfmar looked the agent and the detective over. "We've got things under control now, so whatever we interrupted, you can go ahead and do it."

"Well, I don't know about that, but we'll come up with a solution."

Hopfmar waved them off.

* * *

Ezra James Coleman awoke with a start. He looked over the computer screens. Progress was still so slow.

After gunning down the doctor, he had gone home and resumed work on the virus codes, desperate to find a way to bypass Mewtwotronix. So far, everything had failed.

Failed, unlike everything else. He had made sure nothing could be traced. He had even gone so far as to blow up a cop and kill a Pokebureau agent. The only reason that nothing had been said about the latter was likely because they wanted to lure him out by making him think he hadn't finished the job. Well, that was just too damn bad. They weren't-

The message that suddenly flashed across his screen changed his thinking:

_MEWTWOTRONIX DID NOT DETECT ANY VIRUSES_

He pumped his fists in celebration. Finally! After all that work, everything had finally fallen into place!

Tomorrow, he would show the world what he could do.

* * *

Alex had stayed at the precinct long after most of the others had left. He, too, had a computer project he was working on.

Using a spare computer from the warehouse, he continued to test his anti-virus system, deciding to try out another thing he had created to go with it: a program that could allow him to track a virus to the source and destroy it there, nipping it in the bud. It was powerful, but also dangerous, and one he did not want to use often, if at all.

He sighed and went to get him some coffee. It would be a long night.

* * *

"Well, so much for our plans for the night," Frank muttered as they drove away from the hospital.

"_Duty is what it is, Frank," _Victoria replied. _"It happens to me all the time."_

They drove in silence, but suddenly an idea hit Frank.

"If it's not offensive to you," he began cautiously, "would you maybe want to go to my place for drinks? It's not the best idea, I admit-"

"_Frank, I could care less. I just want a drink- Did you say your house?"_

"Um, yes."

"_I think," _she said, leaning close to his ear, _"that that is the best thing I've heard all day."_

Frank smiled as they continued until they pulled in the driveway.

* * *

"It's gonna look like a mess, but it's kind of a bachelor pad for me and my pets," Frank informed her as they walked in the front door. The Growlithe was asleep, but the Vulpix trotted over and sniffed Victoria before trotting back to his bed, where he curled up and went to sleep himself.

"_Trust me, I've seen worse," _she said as she flopped onto the couch in the living room while Frank sifted through the alcohol.

"Do you drink White Zinfadel?" he asked.

"_I love it."_

He took the bottle, the corkscrew, and two wine glasses and walked over to the couch, setting everything on the coffee table. He poured one glass for her and handed it to her before pouring one for himself. "To us, I guess."

"_I'll drink to that, all right."_

They chuckled and clinked the glasses together before sipping.

"Oh, shoot, you're probably hungry, too," Frank suddenly blurted, setting his glass down.

"_I think a snack would suffice."_

"Oh, OK. Do you like Swiss rolls? I got a bunch of Swiss rolls and-"

"_Oh, my God," _she breathed. _"I LOVE Swiss rolls! Ooh, may I have a couple?"_

Frank smiled. "Coming right up," he said as he got up and left.

In her food-driven ecstasy, she absent-mindedly drained her glass and leaned back in a semi-sprawl. This was turning into a strange night, but it felt so right to her. She couldn't believe she was admitting it, but she was falling in love with this man, this caring, lovable man. She sensed that he felt the same way, How else to explain how worried he seemed to be when she was in the hospital recovering that morning?

She was brought back to reality by a chocolatey Swiss roll being teasingly floated below her nose. Glancing out the corner of her eye, she saw Frank with a goofy smile on his face, a smile that betrayed just a little bit of seduction. She took the little cake from his fingers and slowly, tauntingly, put one end in her mouth.

"I thought you'd like that," Frank chuckled.

She wiggled the roll around, carefully watching his reaction as he leaned closer. There was a certain fire in his eyes as he watched her eating the roll as erotically as she could.

"_You like this, Frank?"_

"Do I have to choose my words carefully?"

She giggled as she finished the roll.

"More wine?"

"_I don't know, I think I may have had enough."_

"You only had one glass."

"_That may still be enough."_

"Well, all right." He corked the bottle and got up to put it and the glasses away. "Mind if I give you the grand tour?"

She got up as well. _"I'd be delighted."_


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's note: I own only the original characters.**

**Let's see…. I've had several murders, a near-death, lots of mood swings, a masturbation scene, voices in heads, computer viruses…. Am I missing something?**

**Oh, yeah, that's right: I need the lemon!**

**And hey, reviews are always appreciated. Sometimes I can build off those and improve my writing skills.**

**VERY strong sexual content warning, as this is a considerably more explicit scene, both in visuals and language, than the one I had in "A Returning":**

"And this is one of the spare bedrooms," Frank said, briefly opening the door so Victoria could peek inside before moving on. "And here's the spare bathroom."

"_How many spare bedrooms do you have?"_ she asked as he showed her another one.

"Just the two."

"_Pretty big house for a bachelor."_

"I know. I guess I wasn't thinking too hard when I bought the place." He stopped at the end of the hall. "And this," he said as he opened another door, "is the master bedroom."

"_Wow," _breathed Victoria as she walked in.

Out the corner of one eye she saw a fairly large dresser with various items seemingly tossed on top. Pushed up at one end against the wall was a king-sized bed, which to her indicated that Frank was someone who didn't exactly like sleeping alone. She turned her head to see another, larger, bathroom nearby.

She walked to the bed, turned, and fell backwards, staring up at the ceiling. _"Oh, my god, this bed is so soft! How can you stand to wake up some days?!"_

"It's the sheets that give extra plush," he told her. "It's not THAT soft underneath."

She felt underneath. _"Liar!"_

"Well, it's my opinion, at least." He pulled off his shoes, tossed his jacket on a chair nearby, and sat down next to her. "Actually, until the past few days, I'd been sleeping quite well."

"_In such a big bed? You can't tell me it doesn't get lonely sometimes."_

"Victoria, you have no idea."

"_You sure about that, Frank?"_

Frank said nothing for a moment.

"_It's not like it's easy for a cop to get a date, let alone a Pokebureau agent. I get lonely too, Frank. All I want some days is just someone I can be with, maybe end up with a steamy one night stand, although it's not required. I know what it's like to have a big bed and no one to share it with."_

He gave her a strange look as she blushed. _"That couldn't have sounded good."_

Smiling, he placed his hand on top of hers. "Don't worry, I've been there too."

She smiled back and flopped down again. Frank flopped down as well, but he landed on his side, looking at her. She turned her head and looked back at him, still smiling.

"You have chocolate crumbs on your face," he playfully informed her.

"_Damn. And I don't have anything to wipe it off with," _she lamented in a clearly non-serious tone.

"I think I know just the thing."

And with that, they reached for each other, drew closer, and became locked into a kiss. After a few moments, they separated, but their faces were still close.

"_Did you get all of it?"_

"I think so."

"_Actually, it looks like the crumbs moved to your something-o'clock shadow. Shame to leave them there…."_

She moved in and they began kissing again, their arms wrapping around each other as they rolled around on the bed. It ended with the Gardevoir straddling Frank's abdomen and undoing the knot on his necktie.

"_It looks like you have crumbs on your nice tie," _she told him. _"Can't have that, can we?"_

They continued kissing as she unbuttoned his shirt while he began rubbing her snow white shoulders, his fingertips tracing little circles on her skin as he began to slowly lower the straps of her dress. She straightened up and lowered them the rest of the way off her arms as he feverishly pulled off his shirt and threw it on the floor before pulling his undershirt off and throwing it there as well.

She leaned forward again and the kissing resumed as he reached behind her and unhooked the clasps on her strapless bra, removing it from her skin and tossing it into the growing pile on the floor. She moaned a little bit as her nipples lightly brushed his chest, her horn barely touching him. His hands continued to course down her back, slipping the dress further away, his fingers reaching for her thong-clad ass, his hands cupping her curves.

He released the kiss and pulled her up until his face was level with her neck and collarbone, and as he began to slowly ease her forward, he kissed her in those areas, letting his teeth barely touch her as he glided along her shoulders. The sensation caused her breath to catch slightly. Then he moved her closer and began to draw moist little circles at the top of each breast with his tongue, spiraling down further and further until he came to her nipples, which to his delight were the same shade of light blue as her hair.

Spurred by his little discovery, he began to rapidly flick his tongue over her right nipple, the movement and the heat of his breath sending ripples of pleasure through Victoria as she moaned and bucked against him. With his right hand, he began to gently squeeze her other breast, his thumb wiggling her nipple around, making her moans increase in pitch. He then switched his mouth to her left breast and his left hand to her right one, sucking her nipple and tracing around her.

Then he paused, letting Victoria slip her dress off and throw it to the floor with everything else while leaving her pantyhose and stilettos on. She leaned forward and their lips connected again, their tongues grappling with each other as Frank let his hands rub her up and down along her sides, occasionally touching the sides of her breasts before sliding them down to her soft yet well-formed backside. He slid his hands under the thong, lovingly caressing her ass as her breaths came out in long, erotically drawn-out exhalations. He reached lower and, with the middle and index fingers of his right hand, he began to rub her slit before pushing in, and a whole new wave of pleasure came over Victoria.

"_Oh god, Frank, you're going to make me insane!" _she got out as he rolled her onto her back and pulled her thong off and tossed it to the pile. He was pleasantly surprised to see that while she kept herself well trimmed, she still had a patch of thick blue fur above her opening. He lowered his head and nuzzled her patch as she let out a long moan.

"I'm glad you like this," he said, mischief in his voice. "I wonder what else you might like?"

With that, he leaned down and ran his tongue along the top of her slit, sliding it in as he moved lower, causing her to thrash harder and moan louder as she began squeezing her breasts. He gently flicked at her clitoris as he inserted a finger into her and began to move in and out, wiggling it around as her moans of pleasure turned into orgasmic screaming. Her eyes flew open, but all she could see was sparks in her head.

"_Oooh, Frank, I'm so gonna cum right now!"_ she screamed as the walls of her vagina tightened around his finger and tongue and she let herself go, spraying him in the mouth and soaking the sheets.

Smiling, tasting her sweetness, he moved forward and they kissed again as she licked some of her fluids off his face. _"That was pretty hot, wasn't it?"_

"If it was for you, it was for me," he replied.

"_Well," _she replied, _"roll over and I'll make it a whole lot hotter."_

Smiling lustfully, he lay down on his back as she undid his pants and pulled them off, taking his socks away in the process. Then she reached out and pulled his boxers down and off, allowing his fully hardened penis to come into view. _"Six and a half, maybe seven inches,"_ she noted. _"Not bad. You'll be just right for me, Frank."_

Frank couldn't help but laugh at that. "Do you analyze all your dates this way?"

She lowered her head and made a long, drawn-out lick, flicking her tongue when she got to the tip. _"Maybe I do, maybe I don't,"_ she replied before wrapping her lips around his shaft, using her tongue to massage him as she lightly caressed his tight scrotum. Frank tensed up a bit in aroused reaction as she enclosed him in her mouth, using one hand to move rhythmically along his base as she sped up her movements, taking him deeper and deeper with every plunge of her head.

Victoria could hear his breathing growing rapid in pace, and she abruptly stopped. _"I think it's time we really got down to it, don't you agree?"_

"You really ARE psychic," he answered as he placed the Gardevoir on her back and spread her legs apart before he moved between them. Holding his hard length in one hand, he began to tease her slit, causing her to begin moaning and bucking again. Encouraged by this, he pushed in, triggering from her what, to him, was a particularly elegant groan of pleasure.

"My god, Victoria, you're so tight," he breathed as he thrust further, pulled out most of the way, then plunged in again, quicker that time.

"_All the more to make this better,"_ she barely managed to say before his thrusting, faster with each motion, caused her to begin moaning less and screaming more. _"Oh god, Frank, you're fucking me so hard right now, I love it!"_

The outbursts brought a smile to one corner of Frank's mouth as he slowed his plunge and pulled all the way out, helping her turn around on all fours. He took her again, not slowing his pace, her tight vagina making this even more intense for him. His rock solid cock glistened with her moisture as he slid in and out, making her drop to her forearms as she grabbed as much of the sheets as she could.

He pulled out again, and she spoke up.

"_Frank, I want you to take me in the ass, now."_

She waited as he kissed her soft folds again before straightening up and, lining himself up with her, he slowly and gently began to push into her tight little asshole. As he moved in further, he thought the whole damn city would be awakened by the ecstasied screams from her mouth. _"Oooh, pound my ass, Frank, just fuckin' pound me, please!"_

In reply, he sped up, his hands moving forward to squeeze her breasts as she sank her front even lower. Every thrust seemed to set off a tiny earthquake inside her as one long, vibrating moan came from her mouth.

"Oh man, I don't know how much longer I can hold on," he gasped as he slid his hands up her body towards him, using the fingers on his right hand to plunge between her soft lower lips and move in rhythm with the speed with which he was thrusting in her ass. Her pleasured whimpers spurred him on and he went faster, and the feeling of being filled twice at the same time unleashed sensation after erotic sensation in Victoria as her legs gave out and she splayed out all over the bed. Frank pulled out of her, then rolled her onto her back. Moving in as close as he could, he got her legs over his shoulders and he entered her moist warmth again. As he picked up speed, he could see her face take on a nearly angelic expression as her back arched repeatedly. Her head bent back as her eyes rolled around at an insane angle with every thrust.

Finally, she could hold on no longer, and for what seemed like the millionth time that night, her vagina clenched around him and she came, her moans finally subsiding as her breath came in short bursts.

Frank felt her cum and realized that he had reached his limit. He pulled out, and Victoria, knowing what he needed, propped herself on her elbows as best as she could and opened her mouth, a contented smile touching the corners as he let go, shooting his sperm all over her face, getting some of it in her mouth and some of it on her flushed cheeks. After a few moments, the wave subsided, and she leaned forward and licked what was left off his tip before they both collapsed.

"_That," _breathed Victoria, _"was perhaps the best sex I have had in a LONG time."_

"It was amazing for me too," Frank softly said, a peaceful smile on his lips.

"_I can tell you know how to please a lady in bed. Or a Gardevoir."_

"Oh really?" he replied mischievously. "Anything else you can tell about me?"

"_You prefer jeans to dress pants, for one. You hate watching the news in the morning. Oatmeal gives you horrific heartburn. Should I continue?"_

Frank let out a stunned half-chuckle.

"Right on all counts. I'm afraid to ask what else you'll tell me."

She laughed and rolled her head, staring at the ceiling a while.

"_You know," _she finally said, _"I've gone from near death to back from the brink to cold determination to a sad realization of what nearly was to relieved cheerfulness to being absolutely horny in the space of a few hours. That has to be some sort of record."_

They lay there in silence for a while, sweat from their lovemaking evaporating into the still-charged air.

"You know, after all that, I don't feel the least bit tired," Frank remarked, finally breaking the silence.

Victoria rolled over on her side, smirking seductively. _"Feel like you could go another round, maybe?"_

"Who knows? Maybe I can go several times over yet."

"_Well," _she said as they reached for each other again, _"why don't we find out?"_


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or their related trademarks. I only own the original characters.**

**OK, I'm gonna have fun with one more lemon before getting to the far more serious business at hand. I do have a story to go along with all of the fun stuff, you know.**

**Again, I'd love to see more reviews for my chapters. I tend to enjoy seeing what you think.**

**Content and language warning, including MORE SEX! BWAHAHAHAHA!:**

The sounds of heavy metal dragged Frank out of a fairly deep sleep. He slapped away at the general vicinity of the alarm clock, eventually returning the room to silence.

Groggily, he propped himself up on the bed and stared at the early beams of sunlight filling the room. He looked down and saw that he had part of the top sheet wrapped around him, but other than that he was naked. Turning his head, he saw Victoria starting to stir next to him. She had gotten less of the sheet than he did.

As he watched, her eyes slowly opened, and just as slowly, she reached out a hand to rub her face. He could see dry white flakes fall to the bed as she did so. Then she broke the silence. _"What time did you finally get to sleep?"_

He looked at the clock again. "Three-thirty, four o'clock maybe?" He then did a double-take. "Damn, it's six already?"

"_We really DID go all night long last night, didn't we?"_

"I'm afraid to see the shape of the house. I think we did it in almost every room of the house. Hell, I think we just stopped short of the front lawn."

"_Are you sure that we didn't?"_

"Oh god, good point. Please tell me we didn't."

"_Just about every position, just about everywhere in the house. Still don't know about the lawn."_

Frank couldn't help but laugh.

"All I know is I'm gonna need a shower," he remarked. "I don't think I've ever sweat that much in my life."

"_So do I,"_ Victoria added. _"Can't exactly go to the precinct with dried cum on my face. Should probably get my teeth brushed, too."_

She sat up and threw her legs over the side of the bed, her back towards him. In the light of the day, her ivory white skin shone with a radiance that Frank found more intoxicating than alcohol. She stood up and sashayed to the bathroom, making sure he got quite the view.

He fell back on his pillow and smiled happily. What a night-

"_Hey," _she yelled from the bathroom, _"do you mind if I use your toothbrush?"_

Frank got up and walked over. "Sure, might as well."

"_Well, I don't want you getting all creepy and stalker-like by deciding not to use it or maybe worship it in a shrine or something."_

She was bent over the sink, her arms propping her over the bowl, soft rear in the air. Frank tried to not let that get in his mind, but soon he was hard as a rock again. Victoria noticed it and smiled seductively.

"_Think you can go one more round?" _she asked.

"Question of the night!" he replied.

"_Was that a yes?"_

In reply, he leaned over and kissed her before gently rubbing her breasts. This caused her to emit a pleasured moan as he lightly played with her nipples before running his hands down her sides, ending at her posterior. He moved behind her, massaging her, then he held his penis in one hand and began teasing her slit, making her moan louder before he pushed inside. Soon, he was thrusting at a feverish pace, forcing Victoria to grab the sides of the sink to support herself as her legs threatened to give way beneath her. Soon, she hit orgasm again and he joined her, their hot fluids mingling inside her body as his pulsations subsided.

After a while, he pulled out, leaving her dripping. She turned and smiled at him.

"_I think I'll take that shower now," _she said.

She walked to the shower, turned the water on, then turned and wiggled her finger in a "come hither" motion.

* * *

They made love for the last time that morning in the shower, the water on their bodies seeming to heighten the intensity. Frank regretted the fact that they had things that needed to be done that day, because he would have been perfectly content to just let the erotic escapades continue. As they slid to the floor of the shower afterwards, he wished that the moment could last forever.

After stopping at the hotel so she could get a different set of clothes for the day, they arrived at the precinct. Much to Frank's surprise, the blonde from the scene of LoMarco's bombing was waiting in the parking lot, and she walked right up to him.

"Detective," she said, a cheerful smile on her face, "thanks for getting the word out about my bomb tech experience! Slateport P.D. called, and they want me to go in for an interview and possible training!"

"Th-that's great," Frank stammered.

"I know, isn't it? It's not the safest job, for sure, but it's a lot better than what I had been doing, right?"

"Certainly."

"Well, I'm sure you two have to get to work. Thanks again!"

Victoria seemed lightly amused as the blonde walked off. _"She stays too hyper like that, they're going to have to restrict her caffeine and sugar intake."_

Frank was quiet as they walked in.

"Sorry again about wrecking your night last night, Frank," Stuart said as soon as he saw him. "Hopefully you were able to salvage something out of it."

"Sort of," Frank replied. "We went someplace for drinks, and then I took her back to the hotel and that was it." _Which is somewhat true,_ he thought.

Stuart raised an eyebrow. "That's it?"

"That's it." Stuart's eyebrow stayed raised. "What?"

"Nothing."

Frank rolled his eyes and walked towards his desk. Halfway there, he stopped and spotted Hopfmar nearby, so he walked up to the captain.

"Hey, captain, would it be OK if I took Victoria down to the river and go over that again?" he asked. "Maybe she can pick up something we missed."

"Go ahead," was the reply.

* * *

Frank stopped the car a bit further down the path than the first time he had been there. "Well, here it is."

"_Where it all began?"_

"Yeah, exactly."

They got out and walked to the water's edge. Victoria gave Frank a quizzical look.

"_Did you bring me out here so we can pick up where we left off this morning?"_

"Under normal circumstances, yes. This is strictly case-related."

"_Oh." _She sounded disappointed.

Frank started walking upstream and Victoria followed.

"_Do you have a girlfriend, Frank?"_

Frank was taken aback. "What? No. Why?"

"_Well, I was wondering, have you ever had a threesome?"_

"Not yet, but that's something I'll make sure to cross off my list when it happens."

"_Oh. Because I would have loved to have had one last night. You and me, and maybe another guy, or another girl, or maybe another Pokemon. What do you think?"_

"I think that's something I can talk about later, when I'm not concentrating on-"

"_What's that in the river?"_

Victoria pushed ahead of him as he tried to see what she saw. "What are you looking at?"

"_It's something stuck to the rocks," _she said as she leaned forward before taking off her shoes.

"I can do that-"

"_Too late." _She carefully waded across the strong current towards the rocks and picked the item up. _"It looks like part of an old camera."_

Frank looked around and was surprised to see pieces of film and chunks of black plastic strewn around. "Whoever killed Joseph Van Der Lunde must not have appreciated the photo shoot." He looked up at the tree overhead. "That one branch looks like it could hold my weight…."

He wasted no time getting his grip on a limb before climbing the tree until he was at the same level as the branch. He carefully crawled across until he was just about over the river.

Victoria, who had just gotten back across, looked up and was struck by another psychic flash.

Instead of Frank, she saw Van Der Lunde, sitting on the branch as he took photographs of something he saw in the distance, when suddenly a Geodude flying up in an arc struck him in the head, nearly decapitating him and sending him falling to the river below.

Then she saw the camera fall from his neck and hit the ground before a boot smashed it into fragments.

"_What did he see up there?"_ she mused out loud.

"Try a bunch of antennae and satellite dishes." He pulled out his cell phone. "Alex, it's Frank. Do you have any aerial images from the river area? OK, is there anything that resembles satellite dishes and antennae? Good. Got a name and address? Right. Thanks, Alex."

He started to move off the branch and begin to climb down as he spoke. "That stuff belongs to an Ezra James Coleman, Stormview Lane. I think we need to pay him a visit."


	16. Chapter 16

**Author's note: Pokemon and related trademarks are the sole property of Nintendo and Game Freak and are not own by the author.**

**Time to get serious. VERY serious.**

**Language warning:**

It was not a few seconds after Frank knocked on the door before a dark-haired young man opened it. "Can I help you?"

"Frank Caldwell, Saffron P.D.. This is Victoria Stillwater from the Pokebureau. We need to ask you a couple of questions."

The man looked at him, then looked at the Gardevoir. For a fleeting moment, he thought he could see the man's expression change, but he couldn't be sure. "About what?" the man asked.

Frank held up a photo of Joseph Van Der Lunde. "Have you seen this man before?"

The man looked at it for a moment. "Not really. Maybe in the news or something."

Frank looked over the man's shoulder and was surprised to see a myriad of computer screens and towers. "We probably shouldn't be making you stand around with the door open. Mind if we come in?"

"Uh, actually, yeah I do," said the man uneasily as he shifted in the doorway. "I'm working on a government project right now, and I need to have clearance to let you in."

"Understandable, although I think being an officer of the law is clearance enough. What kind of project is it, anyway?"

"Antivirus. They want a strong program to defend against cyberattacks. It's hard work, so I haven't had much of a chance to leave the house." He glanced behind him. "I really should be getting back to work, if you don't mind."

"That's fine, sorry for taking up so much of your time."

As the man closed the door, Frank saw a Geodude hopping around near the computers.

* * *

Ezra James Coleman was in a cold sweat as he closed the door.

_Goddamnit, she was supposed to be dead!_ he thought as he rushed to his computers. _Now it'll only be a matter of time before they show up with more cops and ruin everything!_

There was only one thing he could do now.

Grabbing a flash drive, he plugged it into one of the computers and frantically loaded the virus onto the flash. He then pulled out all the cords from the outlets before opening the door and pushing a protesting Geodude outside.

"Go on, it'll be safer out there!" he yelled as he slammed the door shut and went into another room. Inside, there were several large red plastic containers. He grabbed two of them and poured gasoline from them into a circle around all of his papers before pouring a trail out the door till he was near his car. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a book of paper matches and lit all of them at once.

* * *

As soon as they got in the car, Frank pulled his door shut with considerable force. "Fucker's lying," he said as he drove off.

"_How do you know?"_

"We never put that photo on the news, ANYWHERE. Not on TV, not on the internet, not on the newspapers. Son of a bitch!"

"_Yeah, well, that's not the worst part, either."_

"What do you mean?"

"_Frank, you didn't notice his body language? He didn't expect to see me there. Frank… that was him. That was the one who tried to kill me."_

"You're sure?"

Before Victoria could respond, Frank's cell rang and he pulled over. "Caldwell."

"_Frank, it's Alex. I went through the security footage from the intersection and from the hospital parking garage, and it turns out somebody didn't guard his reflection all that well. I got a couple of blurry shots and enhanced them. I'm sending them to your phone. You guys may want to see this."_

A few moments later, the photos appeared on the phone.

"Goddamnit!" Frank spun the car around and grabbed the police radio. "This is Echo-13, requesting assistance at West 1280 Stormview Lane. Send all available units-"

He stopped and looked into the sky as a pillar of smoke towered over the trees.

"And send all available fire department units as well," he added, continuing to yell out orders as he sped down the road.

* * *

Frank slammed on the brakes and he and Victoria ran out of the car towards the burning building. The Geodude was banging on the door, trying to get in.

"Victoria, try to get him to calm down, OK?" Frank asked.

"_Thankfully I still know a few actual moves," _she replied. _"I'll Hypnotize him and get him out of here."_

As she did so, Frank kicked the door open, and was hit by a blazing wind that pelted him with flying papers.

"I guess he tried the whole 'oxygen fuels the fire' idea a little too hard," he remarked as he grabbed a couple of pages and scanned them.

What he read stunned him:

_METWOTRONIX BYPASSED_

_Begin ? Y/N_

_executed successfully._

_All protective systems neutralized._

_Commencing system disablement…._

"MOTHERFUCKER!" he screamed.

Victoria looked up from checking the Geodude. _"What's wrong, Frank?"_

"Son of a bitch wasn't working on some government project, he's created a mega-virus to bring down regional computer systems. We've got the biggest fucking crisis on our hands since the Rockets took over Silph."

Paper in hand, he bolted for the car, with Victoria guiding the protesting Geodude into the back seat. He grabbed the radio again. "This is Echo-13. We need an APB on Ezra James Coleman, wanted on suspicion of murder, attempted murder, and domestic terrorism. Suspect has medium length, dark brown hair, six feet tall, approximately 165 pounds, dressed mainly in black. Search every internet café, any public place that has a computer that can access the Internet, and any place where he can access a Wi-Fi signal. Suspect must be considered armed and extremely dangerous."

As they sped away past fire trucks and police personnel, he repeated the orders, then set the radio down and came to an abrupt stop. Picking up his phone, he swiftly dialed Alex and put him on speaker. _"Yo."_

"Alex, how good is your anti-virus system right now?"

"_Ready to go, why?"_

"Coleman's got a mega-virus ready to set off, and it's programmed to bring down every computer in every region. Can you get your program on all the precinct computers?"

"_Depending on the virus, I might not be quick enough, I'll give it a shot, though."_

"You're a good man, Alex. Or a good Gengar, or whatever."

Frank hung up.

"_Are we sure he got away on us, Frank?"_ Victoria asked.

"We were gone a couple of minutes. Plenty of time for him to load it on a flash drive and go for a hidden getaway car or something."

* * *

Having driven an olive-colored subcompact from a secluded path in the woods to town without being detected, Coleman ducked into the first internet café he saw. Trying to act calm, he sat at one of the computers and plugged the flash drive in.

Soon, a message came up:

_Begin ? Y/N_

He hit the Y key to confirm.

_Please wait…._

_executed successfully._

Without waiting to see how well it would do under the circumstances, he slipped out and got in his car. No sooner did he start it than he caught a glimpse in his rear view mirror of the cop and the agent that had stopped at his house minutes earlier.

* * *

"_THERE!" _Victoria yelled as Coleman sped away.

Frank immediately floored the accelerator pedal and went in pursuit, desperately trying to dodge traffic as the suspect recklessly threw caution to the winds and beyond.

* * *

Alex sat nervously in his chair, watching his monitor, awaiting the worst.

And it soon came.

_PCBeam is under attack!_

_PCBeam beginning virus control…._

His ethereal paw hovered over the mouse, pointed at another program.

He called it Gyracyber. It was the ultimate weapon in destroying a virus at the source. It would travel through all channels and hit the base computer to knock the virus out permanently.

Still, he hesitated. It meant possibly invading someone's privacy, violating countless rulings and laws at times.

_I have no choice now, _he thought. _This is no time to be a stickler._

He started the program and waited anxiously.

* * *

Coleman came to a skidding halt at a construction site, where a partially completed tower was beginning to rise up in the sky. Frank and Victoria stopped a few feet behind him as he suddenly swung a handgun in their direction.

"GET DOWN!" Frank yelled as he pushed Victoria down just as the bullets began to hit the windshield in rapid succession. There was a brief pause as Coleman stopped to reload, giving the detective and the Pokemon time to grab their guns and open their doors, but Coleman was soon firing away again, making it impossible for them to safely exit the vehicle.

"_Damnit, I'm pinned down!"_

"I know, so am I!"

Then the shooting stopped.

"Now!" said Frank as he raised himself up and opened fire.

Coleman promptly bolted for the relative safety of the tower, but not before Frank and Victoria had put a few bullets in his getaway vehicle. Then they emerged from the car and swiftly yet carefully followed him.

"_I'll take one side if you want the other,"_ Victoria said.

"Right," Frank consented as the sirens outside signaled the arrival of more units.

They began searching through every half-finished hallway and every incomplete room, turning up nothing on the ground level. Then they went to the second story but had no luck there either, so they went to the next level.

As Victoria turned a corner, she suddenly felt an arm wrap around her neck and jerk her backwards.

"Shh," Coleman whispered harshly as he dragged her towards a staircase. "Wouldn't look good for you to sound the alarm and get your pretty little head blasted into fragments, now would it? C'mon. We're going to have us a little fun."


	17. Chapter 17

**Author's note: I own nothing but the original characters.**

**Language and violent (read: GORY) content warning. Oh, dear God, the violent (read: GORY) content warning:**

"Talk to me, Alex," Hopfmar said as SWAT personnel swarmed on the ground.

"_It's going slow, but I'm trying to track the virus at its source to destroy it there,"_ came the reply from the precinct.

"And how exactly are you going to do that?"

"_Long story, will tell you later. Meanwhile, I can't seem to spot anything on any security cameras in the area."_

"Well, it's partially enclosed, so you probably won't have much luck." Hopfmar switched channels. "Stuart. Are you in position?"

"I sure as hell hope so," replied Stuart from the top of another building quite a distance away.

* * *

Frank continued to sweep the building, looking for any signs of Ezra James Coleman. As he looked around, he saw, off to the side a short distance, a concrete slab suspended in the air, thin steel rods extending through it and pointing towards the sky.

"Odd," he thought out loud as he climbed another staircase. The noise as he reached the sixth floor grew considerably louder, leading him to suspect that this floor wasn't as complete as the others.

"Is this as far as it goes, boss?" he asked Hopfmar on the ground.

"It goes another floor or two, but it's mainly beams and crap up there," Hopfmar informed him.

"Great," he said as he turned a corner.

"Ah, ah, ah, detective," came an unpleasantly familiar voice.

Frank swung around and was stunned to see Coleman with a gun to Victoria's head, one arm around her throat as he dragged her backwards into the sunshine.

* * *

"Oh my god," Hopfmar breathed, trying not to panic. "Stuart, do you have a shot?"

"Negative, Captain, he's got his head lowered so we can't risk a shot without hurting her as well."

"Great."

* * *

Coleman carefully walked backwards onto an open beam, forcing Victoria to walk on the steel as well. It was a couple of feet wide, not as wide as some of the other beams that would be attached to it later.

"Don't do this, Coleman," Frank warned him.

"Or what? You're going to shoot me?" Coleman let out a harsh laugh. "Shoot me and maybe put a bullet in her head in the process?"

* * *

Alex was sweating profusely now. The longer it took Gyracyber to do its job, the more likely it was that it would be too late.

_Come on, goddamnit, come on, goddamnit!_

He was shaking badly as time went on, but then he saw the message:

_Virus source located._

_Destroy now?_

He hit Y for yes.

And was stunned.

_Holy shit, this thing is FAST! _he wondered as the program began to show swift progress in destroying the virus.

* * *

Hopfmar watched from below, helpless to do anything more than hope that somehow Frank could talk Coleman into letting Victoria leave safely. The snipers had no chance of getting the shot as Coleman continued to stand so that Victoria would be endangered by a bullet.

"_Boss?" _came Alex's voice.

"What, Alex?"

"_The virus has been eliminated. And as far as I can tell, it hasn't done any major damage."_

"Good. Now we need to hope for a miracle for Victoria."

* * *

"You cops are all alike," Coleman scoffed. "Always thinking you can save the day. Always thinking you can get the bad guys locked up. Reality is something you don't know jack SHIT about."

"Coleman, this is not how it has to end," Frank said, keeping his gun pointed at the killer's head but not daring to take the shot.

"Of course it is. There's only one way this ends. I kill her. Then I kill you. Then I walk out of here before your trigger-happy snipers start shooting wildly and missing all the time. Then I sit back and watch Johto, Kanto, Sinnoh, Hoenn, and Unova burn as all of their technology gets rendered useless. All thanks to me."

Hopfmar's voice came in Frank's ear. "Frank, Alex has the virus disabled and we located the source. We have units heading to an internet café now to secure evidence."

Frank kept the gun steady. "It's over, Coleman."

"No. No, it isn't. Never has been, never will be."

"The virus is dead. You lost."

"Bullshit! That virus can't be destroyed by ANY system that exists! Not even Mewtwotronix!"

"You underestimate the Saffron Police Department, Coleman. The virus is dead and they're seizing the computer you used to spread it."

"LIAR!" Coleman tightened his grip on Victoria's neck.

"It's over, Coleman. Let Agent Stillwater walk back towards me."

"You're pathetic," sneered Coleman. "You only see what you want to see in your perfect little world. I've had to do odd jobs for months because there's been nothing for me here. I've had to watch everyone else achieve whatever the fuck they wanted while I've had to scrape together what I could for my revenge. But none of you has ever put in the work I have to build the most indestructible computer virus known to man. You people are pathetic. I hate your world full of justice and order and peace. I want to fucking send everything to hell, and there is nothing that you or anyone else will ever be able to do about it!"

"_Not quite," _Victoria managed to get out.

"What-"

In one fluid motion, the Gardevoir broke his grip around her neck and shoved him off the beam as hard as she could. As she did so, however, she lost her balance and slipped. She managed to reach out and grab the edge of the beam before she, too, could fall, but the steel was hot and hurt her hand, and she was dangling by her leg and her arm, trying desperately to hold on.

Frank ran over, sat astride the beam, and ignored the burning pain as he scooted across to her. He reached out his hand and grabbed her free arm and began to pull her up. "Hold on, Victoria!"

* * *

Coleman felt a searing pain as he landed on a hard surface. He felt with his hand.

Concrete.

His head dangled in the air.

A slab. He had landed on the edge.

Nothing felt broken.

But that pain….

He raised his head to look at himself.

What he saw were a couple of steel rods bloodily protruding from his torso.

_Oh, this is not good._

He tasted blood coming out of his mouth and could see more blood spreading out underneath him.

_OK, calm down, Coleman. It's not that bad. You're going to get out of this just fine. Somehow._

He looked up and saw the Gardevoir struggling to pull herself back onto the beam and the cop trying to pull her to safety.

He turned his head and saw his gun lying within reach.

_Of course. I shoot him, she has nothing to hold onto, she falls to her death-_

He reached out for the pistol, but his hand was shaking violently, and he accidentally knocked it off. It fell harmlessly into wet cement below, wet cement that saw its grayness stained with drops of dark red.

Then he heard another man say, "The virus has been deactivated. We're all clear."

And in that moment, as the blood drained uninhibited from his body and a frightening darkness began to descend on him like a malevolent entity, Ezra James Coleman came to the horrified realization that he was going to die.


	18. Chapter 18

**Author's note: I do not own Pokemon or related trademarks.**

**Well, this is it: the end of the story. Not much to do other than wrap up stuff and move on to the next story, which, by the way, WILL be a sequel. I actually plan to do several stories with many of these same characters. Except for Coleman. He can stay dead. Haha.**

**The next story, I plan to focus a lot more on the characters and a bit less on the actual case. It won't be as violent as this one, not by a long shot, but it's gonna have a lot more lemony goodness. I hope you'll like it as much as you've liked this.**

**Language and content warning, more language than content if anything:**

"Hold on, Victoria!" Frank yelled as he put all his effort into pulling her back onto the hot steel beam.

At the same time as he pulled, she pulled herself closer with her left leg draped over the beam, using as much energy as she could to get herself upright.

He pulled her closer to him, and with one last major heave he pulled her up into a sitting position, where she remained for a couple of seconds, panting.

"OK, I'm going to carefully move backwards, and you'll need to creep along towards me, OK?"

"_Got it," _she replied.

Glancing quickly behind him, he began to slowly scoot towards the floor, with Victoria matching his pace, not daring to look down. Frank repeatedly checked behind him to see how much further he had to get before it was safe to stand again.

After several agonizing minutes, he finally had backed onto the secure concrete slab. Victoria got to the edge, then Frank reached out and pulled her onto the floor. She crawled on her hands and knees a couple of feet before she finally dared to stand up. Frank rose with her, and they silently walked to the inside of the unfinished tower.

At last, he spoke.

"Don't EVER scare me like that again," he told her.

She remained silent, so Frank drew her close to him and they held each other for what seemed like hours, her head on his chest.

* * *

Stuart lowered his rifle and put the safety on. Then he flopped on his back and breathed a sigh of relief as he stared into the sky.

"Too close," he breathed.

There was a bit of static on the radio. "Stuart, are you OK up there?" Hopfmar asked.

"Yeah, just give me a minute."

He continued to stare upwards in a semi-daze.

_Too fucking close,_ was all he could think.

* * *

Alex took of his headset and was surprised to see that it was seemingly drenched in sweat.

_Holy shit. I never thought a Ghost/Poison-type could sweat that much._

He was relieved to see that none of the precinct computers had been damaged by the virus. It was proof that his program could, in fact, work commercially.

"_Nah,"_ he said out loud.

It would be a much better idea, he decided, to just distribute it free of charge to the other departments for their own use. Sure, he could make a fortune off the thing, but….

Then his eye, and the mouse pointer, went to the Start menu. He opened it and went to Gyracyber. Then he clicked "Uninstall Gyracyber."

The question came on the screen:

_Are you sure you want to uninstall Gyracyber and all of its components?_

He hesitated.

On one hand, it had been a colossal help in destroying the virus and preventing it from destroying any other computers in the region. Something like this would be a powerful weapon against cyberterrorists in the future.

On the other hand, there were so many boundaries and rules that would be broken. Privacy would be threatened, and in the wrong hands it could be used to destroy the systems of opposing regions, or worse, the terrorists could use it themselves in ways Ezra James Coleman would certainly have approved of.

Alex hit the Enter key.

_Best to leave Pandora's box closed,_ he decided.

* * *

Frank had one arm around Victoria's shoulders as they walked towards Hopfmar. The captain seemed relieved to see them safe.

"You gave us quite the scare, Agent Stillwater," he told Victoria.

"_Yeah, I know. I already got scolded by Frank for it, too."_

Frank chuckled, but then he turned his head and looked up and stopped.

"Holy shit," he said in bewildered disbelief. "Talk about impaled with extreme prejudice."

"Yeah. That's going to be fun trying to process-"

An angry looking man who appeared to be of Middle Eastern descent strode furiously up to the captain. "What is wrong with you?" he shouted. "You ruin my tower! It will cost money to fix!"

"Sir, I can assure you-" Hopfmar began but was cut off.

"You see there is the blood all over the concrete! You will pay for repairs!"

"Look, I don't-"

"You pay me big money to fix your mess! This will cost lots of money to clean up!"

Two Officer Jennys, trying to hide their amusement, pulled him away as he continued to yell in broken English. Hopfmar shook his head. "I swear, some days I can never get paid enough."

He paused a moment, as if trying to find words he had set aside. "You two did great today," he finally said. "Agent Stillwater, I don't think I can thank you enough for what you've done to help close this case."

"_Just doing my job, captain,"_ she replied.

"They're going to have a press conference in about ten minutes. I suggest you two get ready."

* * *

After the press conference, which went smoother than Frank had anticipated, he had gone back to the precinct after dropping Victoria at the hotel. It was time to lay the case to rest.

One by one, he carried evidence boxes to the storage room, writing **CLOSED **on each one.

When the last box was in place, he stepped back and took a look.

A photographer. Two cab drivers. A young girl. The police commissioner. A veteran detective. A doctor. All victims of a madman bent only on destruction. All of them avenged. All of them, perhaps, at peace, even LoMarco.

Frank walked away, but at the door, he stopped and looked back one last time at them.

"We turned out OK after all, didn't we?" he asked.

_Yeah, yeah, whatever,_ the voice in his head told him. _Shut the goddamned lights off already. Let the dead be free._

Smiling a bit at that, Frank turned the switch to the "off" position and closed the door.

Then he felt a vibration in his pocket.

He pulled out his phone and saw that he had a text message.

_Think you can go one more round?_

* * *

He turned off the ignition and sat there for a while, staring.

It seemed odd that he had found himself sexually attracted to a Pokemon. And yet he saw Victoria as something different. He wasn't sure if he'd ever found a more willing lover before her, and he wondered if he'd ever find another one after she was gone.

It made him sad.

_Story of your life, kiddo,_ said the voice. _You love them, then you have to leave them behind._

_Maybe,_ Frank replied. _But I try to make the memories worthwhile, right?_

_Whatever. Don't keep her waiting._

_Maybe I DO want her to wait. Gets her hornier if I do that, perhaps._

_GET OUT OF THE FUCKING CAR RIGHT NOW, JACKASS!_

Chuckling, Frank got out and walked inside the hotel.

He double checked the text, making sure she'd given him the right room number. When he found it, he knocked a single, almost longing, knock.

She opened the door, naked except for her thong. Gently pulling him in by the tie, she paused briefly to put the "Do Not Disturb" sign on the doorknob before closing.

* * *

They stood together in the train station the following day, crowds milling around them.

She was wearing a gown that made her look much less like a Pokebureau agent and more like the shiny Gardevoir that she really was. Frank had insisted on carrying her bags, which, to him, seemed to feel particularly heavy with his impending loneliness.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye," he said, unable to fully mask the sadness in his voice.

"_Yeah, I guess you're right. Who knows? Maybe we'll be able to work together again sometime."_

The human smiled. "I'd love that."

Victoria gazed at the floor, head bowed, almost as if she was ashamed to leave. Frank couldn't bear to see her that way. He gently placed his hand on her cheek and softly lifted her head up before kissing her. It brought a smile to her lips as he let his arm fall to his side.

"_Goodbye, Frank. And thank you for the lovely time, or what we could make lovely."_

Frank was too choked up to reply, so he nodded faintly as she picked up her luggage and climbed aboard the train.

He looked up as it began to pull away, and he saw her wave a loving farewell to him and he waved back as the train sped off until it was only a memory in the vast distance between souls.


End file.
